Joel Casamayor vs Juan Manuel Marquez

Juan Manuel Marquez became the recognised lightweight champion by stopping Joel Casamayor with five seconds remaining in the 11th round at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Marquez knocked the Cuban down twice before referee Tony Weeks ended the contest at 2 minutes 55 seconds. Both men weighed 135lb. An attendance of 7,882 watched Marquez, in his first appearance at the lightweight limit, become the first opponent to stop Casamayor in a professional career then extending beyond 15 years.

Casamayor entered with a record of 36 wins, three defeats and one draw and was recognised by The Ring as champion on the strength of his victory over Diego Corrales in 2006. His position had been weakened by a disputed decision over Jose Armando Santa Cruz, but he restored much of his standing by rising from a knockdown to stop the unbeaten Michael Katsidis in March 2008. Marquez, 48–4–1, had moved up from super-featherweight after losing a narrow split decision to Manny Pacquiao six months earlier. At 35, he was attempting to win recognition in a third weight division against a 37-year-old southpaw who remained one of the most accomplished and awkward technicians in the sport.

The opening rounds were cautious but exacting. Casamayor moved forward more than expected in the first, using the right jab and quick straight left while waiting for Marquez to lead. Marquez briefly staggered him with an early counter right, but the Cuban recovered and snapped back the Mexican’s head with a left. Neither man committed himself without calculation. Each understood the other’s preference for counter-punching, and several exchanges began only after one fighter had attempted to draw the first blow.

Marquez pressed with greater purpose in the second, but Casamayor’s southpaw positioning and slightly quicker feet allowed him to make the newcomer miss. The third was busier. Casamayor threw combinations and finished them with the left, while Marquez answered with straight rights whenever the champion remained within range. Weeks warned Marquez after a low punch, though there was no deduction. In the fourth, Marquez increased his combinations and began stepping across Casamayor’s lead foot to obtain a clearer line for the right hand. Casamayor continued to counter effectively and often caught him while retreating, leaving the contest difficult to separate.

The first definite change occurred in the fifth. A clash of heads opened a cut over Casamayor’s right eye, and Marquez began finding the range with his right hand. He drove the champion towards the ropes with combinations and forced him to clinch near the bell. Marquez continued his advance in the sixth, striking through the centre with straight punches and bringing blood from Casamayor’s nose. Another meeting of heads caused a brief complaint from the Mexican, but the action continued without penalty. Casamayor was taking the cleaner punches, although his counters prevented Marquez from attacking without care.

Marquez’s body punching became more noticeable in the seventh. Casamayor was warned after landing low, and the challenger replied with a brisk right-left combination. The Cuban remained dangerous whenever Marquez lunged or allowed his feet to come too close together. In the eighth, Casamayor recovered some ground by returning to patient counter-punching. He landed straight lefts as Marquez entered and twice knocked him off balance with sharp replies. The ninth was similarly competitive, with Casamayor slipping combinations and finding Marquez with the left while the Mexican continued to land the heavier right hands.

The 10th supplied the clearest indication of the approaching finish. Casamayor again countered with the left, but Marquez struck him with a heavy right, causing the champion to lower his hands and shake his head in defiance. Marquez immediately punched again while the guard was down. Casamayor’s gesture suggested that the blow had affected him more than he wished to admit. At the end of 10 rounds, judge Glenn Feldman had Marquez leading 97–93, while Patricia Morse Jarman and Paul Smith each had the contest level at 95–95.

Casamayor was still answering effectively in the 11th when Marquez completed the work. After an exchange near the ropes, the Mexican drove a right hand into the champion’s head as Casamayor pulled away. Casamayor fell backwards and rose unsteadily, plainly hurt but determined to continue. Marquez did not rush without control. He closed the distance, threw both hands in combination and kept Casamayor under pressure while the Cuban attempted to fight his way clear. A final series, ending with another right hand, sent Casamayor down heavily near the ropes. Weeks stepped between them without beginning another count, stopping the fight five seconds before the bell.

The ending was decisive in a match that remained closely balanced until its final minutes. Casamayor’s movement, southpaw counters and experience troubled Marquez through the early and middle rounds. Marquez nevertheless continued adjusting his distance, found increasing success with the right and gradually forced the older man into longer exchanges. No reckless attacks came until the first knockdown made it safe to try.

Marquez left the ring with The Ring and lineal lightweight championships, having made a successful debut at 135lb against the division’s recognised leader. Casamayor had lost decisions before, but no previous opponent had stopped him. His resistance and clever counter-punching made the achievement more substantial than the late finish alone suggested. For Marquez, the victory began the strongest period of his lightweight career; in his next contest he stopped Juan Diaz in the ninth round after another demanding encounter.

I’ve always enjoyed fights between proper counter-punchers because they become contests of nerve. Neither man wants to lead carelessly, yet somebody must eventually take responsibility. Casamayor was 37 but still a difficult opponent: a clever southpaw, an Olympic champion and the recognised lightweight king after stopping Michael Katsidis. Marquez was moving up after another disputed loss to Manny Pacquiao.

Casamayor gave him serious problems early. He changed the distance, stepped away from Marquez’s right hand and caught him with the straight left whenever he reached. Marquez did what great fighters do—he gathered information without panicking. From the fifth, he shortened his steps, stopped lunging and began driving the right straight through the middle.

The fight remained close because Casamayor was too experienced to be mastered easily. Two judges had it level after 10 rounds, which was fair. But Marquez’s punches were becoming heavier, and Casamayor’s habit of dropping his hands after being hit was asking for trouble.

The finish was top-class. Marquez dropped him with a right in the 11th, stayed calm when Casamayor rose and found the second knockdown through controlled combinations. Casamayor had never previously been stopped. Marquez did it in his first lightweight contest, which tells you everything about his timing, patience and finishing instinct.