Photo Courtesy: Mikey Williams/Top Rank
NEW YORK CITY —Mikaela Mayer (20-2, 5 KOs) is once again a world champion.
The former unified junior lightweight queen defeated bitter rival Sandy Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KOs) via majority decision to capture the WBO welterweight world title Friday evening at The Theater at Madison Square Garden.
Tensions were high leading up to the fight, with Mayer accusing Ryan of poaching her longtime training team—a claim Ryan denied. The animosity carried into the ring with intense exchanges throughout the fight.
Mayer’s strategy was to step to her left to avoid Ryan’s hooks. In doing so, she created space for counter rights and lefts as Ryan tried to close the distance. Though Ryan shifted the momentum by stumbling Mayer with a hook in the sixth, Mayer responded by hurting her with a counter in the eighth.
As Ryan increased the pressure, Mayer prevailed in most of the exchanges and clinched the victory with scores of 97-93 and 96-94, overruling one judge’s 95-95 draw.
Mayer said, “It was similar to how I thought it would go. I always said before that I respected Sandy as a boxer. She has a big pedigree, just like myself, but I knew I was gonna beat her to the punch. I knew I was faster. I knew I was sharper. And that’s exactly what I did.
“I picked it up halfway through the fight, like I always do. I always turn it on in that second half of the fight. And she just couldn’t handle my timing. So, I felt like I won the fight, and I’m just glad I got the right decision this time.
“I want to finish what I started and go undisputed. I came very close at junior lightweight. But my body outgrew that weight. I’m comfortable now. I feel like I’m stronger than ever. I’m still in my prime, as you can see. So I’m coming for the other champions.”
Ryan said, “I’m obviously disappointed, and I’m not taking nothing away from the decision. But before coming to the venue, I don’t know if you guys seen, but I had a hit and run {with paint outside the hotel}. And that was definitely set up. I’m not taking nothing away from the win, but it unsettled me.
“It threw me off a bit of my game plan because I just wanted to fight. And you saw at the start of the fight, I was handling her quite well on the jab. I was boxing her and then I started to pick it up. But then, I was obviously pushing it too hard.
“It’s nice to fight in America again. But I just don’t like the circumstances that happened to me before the fight. But I can’t take nothing away from that. It is what it is.”
Twenty For Twenty
Puerto Rican junior middleweight Xander Zayas (20-0, 12 KOs) wanted to end tonight’s co-feature with a stoppage, but the durable Damian Sosa (25-3, 12 KOs) wasn’t going down easily, pushing the 22-year-old to settle for a shutout unanimous decision (100-90 3x).
Zayas quickly found his rhythm, sitting on his punches by the third round and answering Sosa’s pressure with sharp counterpunches. Whenever Sosa advanced, Zayas responded with precise power shots, alternating between body and head.
By the middle rounds, Zayas was in total command, buzzing Sosa with a right hand in the sixth. Despite seeking the finish, Zayas couldn’t put Sosa away, as the Mexican warrior held on until the final bell.
Zayas said, “He pushed me and elevated me to the next level. Now, I feel like I’m ready. Before, I felt like I was ready. But now I think I let everybody know that I’m ready for the elite names.
“Man, they said he throws 84 punches per round. I didn’t see that today. I did my job. Now, I just have to be calm, relax, and see what my promoter wants. I want whoever is in the top five.”
Shu Shu Remains PerfectBrooklyn-born featherweight Bruce Carrington eked out a hard-fought 10-round majority decision over Ugandan contender Sulaiman Segawa by scores of 95-95 and 97-93 2x.
Segawa (17-5-1, 6 KOs) entered the bout with heightened confidence following his upset win over Ruben Villa in July. He looked to repeat that success against Carrington (13-0, 8 KOs) by catching him with fast counters in the opening rounds.
Carrington found his rhythm by rounds three and four, pressing forward with a focused body attack. But Segawa responded in the fifth, and the two went back and forth as they jockeyed for position and traded single shots while avoiding counters.
Segawa threw more punches throughout the fight (416-358), though he eased off the gas in the final round. Carrington swept the 10th on all three judges’ cards.
Carrington said, “I owe him a lot {for that education tonight}. This is just gonna get me to the next level. I just learned to deal with the off-tempo. I got a couple of things I gotta work on back in the gym. We gotta get back on our beat and have more dominant performances. But as long as we got the ‘W’ at the end of the day, we’re still good.”
Junior Middleweight: New Jersey’s Vito Mielnicki Jr. (20-1, 12 KOs) made his MSG debut with a hard-fought and deserved 10-round majority decision against Italy’s Khalil El Harraz (16-6-1, 2 KOs). Mielnicki tried to keep the fight at a distance, but El Harraz closed the gap often. When the action moved inside, Mielnicki responded with well-placed body shots to maintain control. Scores: 95-95, 100-90, and 98-92.
Bantamweight:Floyd Diaz (13-0, 3 KOs) tallied an eight-round point verdict over Mario Hernandez (12-5-1, 4 KOs). Diaz connected with counter jabs and check left hooks to keep the aggressive Hernandez at bay before flooring him in the fifth with a perfectly timed right uppercut. Diaz went for the finish, but the resilient Mexican veteran held on until the final bell. Scores: 78-73 2x and 77-74.
Junior Welterweight: Dominican southpaw Elvis Rodriguez (17-1-1, 13 KOs) secured a commanding unanimous 10-round points win over Kendo Castañeda (21-7, 9 KOs). Rodriguez took charge of the fight with body shots in the fourth round, followed by flurries of power punches in the fifth that caused a cut above Castaneda’s left eye. Scores: 100-90 2x and 99-91.
Junior Welterweight:Tiger Johnson (14-0, 6 KOs) overcame his most formidable challenge yet, earning an eight-round unanimous decision against Puerto Rico’s Yomar Alamo (22-3-1, 13 KOs). Johnson managed Alamo’s awkward style with footwork and clinching, landing sharp counters from the outside. Scores: 78-74 2x and 77-75.
Junior Welterweight: Dominican Olympian Rohan Polanco (14-0, 9 KOs) halted Argentine veteran Marcelino Lopez (37-5-1, 22 KOs) in the sixth round. Polanco handed Lopez the first knockdown of his 17-year career with a sharp right uppercut in the third. Lopez survived, but Polanco forced him to take a knee twice in the sixth, leading referee Eddie Claudio to stop the contest at 2:08.
