Andre Ward Batters Jean Into Submission; Chuy’s Comeback Run Continues

Iron Fight Night Girls

By:  Jeff Townsend 4/2/07
Bayareasportsdrive.com

Andre Ward overwhelmed another opponent Thursday night at San Jose’s HP Pavilion by displaying all of the skills that led him to win a Gold Medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics – fast hands, superior footwork, great defense and excellent overall boxing skills.  One might think that Ward is the heir apparent to the amazingly-gifted Roy Jones, Jr. based on his recent performances.

Andre Ward, from Oakland, California, improved his record to a perfect 11-0 (6 KOs) with a third round TKO of late sub Julio Jean 7-11-1 (3 KOs) from Haiti despite blood trickling down one side of his face. 

In the first two rounds, Ward expertly boxed Jean while switching between orthodox and southpaw.  Ward was most effective when he would catch Jean on the ropes and throw combinations but he was mainly boxing in a cautious manner.  Jean seemed to have a strategy of avoiding being hit rather than trying to land solid punches.  Slipping and sliding, Jean would rush Ward and then quickly move away in attempt to discourage Ward or simply attempt to be very elusive. 

After jumping in with a punch in the middle of the second round, Ward was cut under the left eye due to an accidental head butt.  The third round opened with Ward bleeding under his left eye and a slight look of urgency in his eyes.  Ward turned it on and started throwing a barrage of punches.  Jean was no longer talking smack to Ward as he had earlier since he was very busy trying to avoid being hit. 

Catching Jean in the corner, Ward landed a few uppercuts and then scored with some huge right hand punches.   Jean was clearly hurt and unable to get out of a bad situation, which prompted the referee to stop the fight at 2:04 of the third round.    

Jean could best be described as a ‘stepping stone’ since he has been knocked out by a number of undefeated opponents while going the distance against rising star John Duddy.  Ward was originally set to face Delray Raines (8-1, 5 KOs) who may have given Ward more of a challenge. 

This fight could best be described as a super middleweight (168) bout since Ward came in at 166 pounds while Jean weighed in at 172.   Jean has been fighting recently at super middleweight and, despite coming in at the second heaviest weight of his career (172) and being a short-notice replacement for Ward’s original opponent, Jean looked to be cut and in good shape.  Ward has been campaigning at middleweight (160) since he began his pro career 2+ years ago so it will be interesting to see if he decides to fight at this higher weight level or if he was merely a bit out of shape. 

Chuy Boxes His Way To Win #14

In the main event, Jesus ‘Chuy’ Rodriguez (14-2, 5 KOs) from Salinas, CA continued his comeback with a unanimous decision over hard-hitting Carlos De La Cruz (10-7, 10 KOs) of Mexico in a ten round super lightweight (140) bout.  Despite being several inches shorter than De La Cruz, Chuy controlled the fight with a good, crisp jab while using superior foot movement to move in and out.   This allowed Chuy to be the busier and more effective fighter, giving him his 14^th win of his career.

Chuy had to throw his jab with an upward angle due to his height disadvantage and he really got into a groove with it in the third round.  Chuy excelled at landing jabs or 1-2 combinations and then quickly moving away.  This pattern was repeated over and over, with De La Cruz unable to ever catch up to Chuy.  

There was good action but neither fighter was ever hurt except for a bloody nose that De La Cruz suffered in the first round and which continued to bleed throughout the fight.  Chuy did turn up the aggression in the later rounds, knocking out De La Cruz’s mouthpiece with a solid punch in the ninth round and really pushing the action in the tenth round. 

Chuy had a lot of supporters in the crowd (chants of ‘Chuy, Chuy’ seemed to occur every other round), partly due to his inspirational story.  After turning pro at 19 and having six fights in three years, Chuy was forced to take a break from boxing in 2002 due to a three year stint in jail.   Resuming his boxing career upon his release in 2005, Chuy has now had 10 fights, compiling a 9-1 record.  Along with his clear dedication to boxing, Chuy has worked with numerous youth groups in order to help kids stay out of trouble. 

Two judges scored it 100-90 while the other judge had it 99-91, all for Jesus ‘Chuy’ Rodriguez.

Grace Battles His Opponent And His Physical Condition To Win

In the opening bout of the night, super middleweight Jose Grace (4-1, 0 KOs) won a four round unanimous decision against Allen Medina (7-13, 1 KO) which provided an interesting twist to the evening.   The first round saw Grace throw a lot of punches and completely control the action.   In the middle of the second round, Grace vomited near one of the corners.  The referee brought the doctor into the ring to make sure Grace was okay to continue and the fight resumed.  Not surprisingly, Grace was a lot less active for the next two rounds but did enough for all three judges to score the fight 40-36 for Grace. 

Attendance was 4,124 for the season opener of “American Metal & Iron Fight Night at the Tank” in San Jose, California. 

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

Here are tonight's results from American Metal & Iron Fight Night at HP
Pavilion at San Jose:

 JESUS "CHUY" RODRIGUEZ  (14-2, 5KOs)      Def.           CARLOS DE LA
CRUZ  (10-7, 10KOs)  10 RD UD

ANDRE WARD (11-0, 6KOs)                                Def.
JULIO JEAN  (7-11-1, 3KOs)  3 RD TKO 2:04

 SHADI HAMSHO (9-0, 1KO)                               Def.
CARLOS MUSQUEZ (3-1-1, 3KOs)  4 RD UD       

PAUL VASQUEZ (6-1-1, 2KOs)                             Def.
ISRAEL SPENCER (2-2, 2KOs) 2 RD  KO  2:54

JOSE GRACE (4-1, 0KOs)                                      Def.
ALLEN MEDINA (7-13, 1KO)  4RD UD

Attendance:  4,124