When people talk about fighters putting it all on the line, Matthysse and Provodnikov deserve, at the very least, an honorable mention?
Saturday night at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York, former WBC junior welterweight champion Lucas Matthysse (37-3, 34 KOs), from Buenos Aires, Argentina, eked out a majority decision over former WBO junior welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov (24-4, 17 KOs), from Beryozovo, Russia, after 12 vicious rounds of fighting. The final scores were 114-114, and 115-113 twice.
Fighting out of the blue corner in camouflage trunks, Matthysse, aka La Machina (The Machine), was the favorite coming in. A more complete fighter than Provodnikov, who was fighting out of the red corner in black and gold trunks, Lucas fought one of the toughest, most resilient fighters in the game today and one who pushed him to the very limit of his considerable talents.
Matthysse started strong. Using his superior skills and footwork, he won the first two rounds behind combination punching, lefts hooks, and a deadly uppercut. Provodnikov was firing single bombs in return. He was ineffective. He looked outclassed. He also suffered a serious gash on his left eyelid from an accidental headbutt.
Round three was a better round for Provodnikov. Matthysse was still dominating the fight, landing to the head and body at will. But one got a sense that Provodnikov wasn?t done, at least not yet, even though blood flowed freely down the side of his face.
Provodnikov?s ability to take a licking and somehow keep on ticking was on display in round four. Matthysse got things started with a four-punch combination, further rearranging his opponent?s features. Provodnikov landed a left and right that forced Matthysse to hold on. When his head cleared, the Argentinean landed another four-punch combination. The Russian Rocky came back with a body shot, followed by a right-left-right trifecta that won him the round.
Between rounds Matthysse?s cornerman told him, ?Don?t exchange. I know you want it but don?t exchange.?
The fight continued to heat up in the fifth. Matthysse appeared to have given up boxing and moving, either willfully or because he had no choice. He and Provodnikov stood in the middle of the ring and traded punches. Provodnikov got the best of it, whereas Matthysse got the worst.
Matthysse took rounds six and seven. With pinpoint accuracy he was bouncing combinations off Provodnikov?s increasingly misshapen head. Whenever Ruslan got close to enough to land on the inside, Matthysse would smother his punches. He was back to fighting the fight he needed to fight if he had any hope of winning.
Round eight was close and could have gone either way. Matthysse continued to landed combinations, but Provodnikov had closed the distance. They traded right hands. Lucas landed two jabs. As the round was drawing to a close, Provodnikov landed a right followed by a body shot. Despite having eaten an inordinate amount of punches, he was still in the fight.
Round nine began as most of the rounds began, with Matthysse landing a four-punch combination. Provodnikov?s face was a mess but he landed a three-punch counter of his own. A hard right and big left hook stunned Matthysse at the bell. It was another round in the bag for Provodnikov.
Matthysse regained control of the fight in round 10. He landed a three-punch combination, followed by a left to the head and body. His jab was working overtime. Provodnikov landed right on the inside. He also connected with a right at the bell.
Provodnikov?s corner told him after the 10th, ?This guy?s on his way down.? They were being optimistic.
Matthysse started round 11 by going to the body. Then he landed several jabs and a straight right. Some tape on his glove had come loose in the heat of battle. Due to confusion in Matthysse?s corner, there was a long delay in the action. When the fight resumed, it was as though Provodnikov, having made the most of the unscheduled rest, was a new man. He rallied to win the round.
In the 12th round, where the give-and-take was as hard to score as the rounds preceding it, it looked like Provodnikov had done enough to win the final round, if not exactly the fight.
The problem, one of many, is that Provodnikov was playing catch-up for most of the fight. Another problem was his face, which looked like he was mauled by a lion.
CompuBox numbers indicate that Matthysse landed 327 of 1034 punches to Provodnikov?s 201 of 755. That?s a lot of leather thrown. It?s also a lot of damage done, both in the short- and long-term. A draw wouldn?t have been unreasonable under the circumstances, no more unreasonable than awarding Matthysse the decision.
When people talk about fighters putting it all on the line, Matthysse and Provodnikov deserve a nod, or maybe even an honorable mention.
