Jarrett Hurd and Jeison Rosario entered the ring at the ProBox TV Events Center in Plant City, Florida on Wednesday night with both men looking for a win that would reignite their careers. But at the end of ten tough rounds in which both wrung what they could out of their veteran bodies, neither left the ring with what they wanted, as they battled to a split draw. Scores were 96-94 Hurd, 96-94 Rosario, and 95-95.
In a cautious first round in which both men looked anxious to avoid an early mistake given what was at stake, Hurd circled and fired hard jabs, including one that snapped back Rosario’s head, as Rosario sized him up warily.
Rosario began to show some offense at the beginning of the second, but Hurd looked the looser of the two, his jab carrying more authority and his right hand cocked although neither man at this stage showed the snap and drive that had carried them both to world titles.
The two men continued to exchange jabs in the third, but Hurd scored with a sharp counter right that caught Rosario’s attention.
Hurd briefly opened up a little at the start of the fourth and showed the greater activity throughout the frame, popping his jab in Rosario’s face and looking to land short counters inside, while Roasrio attempted to force the action with Hurd against the ropes at round’s end.
As the fifth round opened it felt as both men were more intent on not losing than going all out to win, but as the round progressed, the pace picked up. Hurd landed a right hand behind Rosario’s guard, and Rosario backed Hurd into the ropes in a neutral corner. Suddenly, Hurd was falling through the ropes, but it was not from a push and the action continued when he clambered back into the ring.
The pace was picking up now as Rosario started slowly going through the gears. The two men dug to each other’s bodies in the sixth, Rosario backed Hurd to the ropes, landed a right hand and then a left-right combination, and then – in what is surely a first – a big left hand sent Hurd’s hair tie flying out of the ring. (His corner used tape to keep his hair secure for the rest of the bout.)
Hurd leaned against the ropes in the seventh, seemingly inviting Rosario onto him as he looked for an opportunity to land a counter right. A left-right landed for Hurd and then a right and Rosario returned fire. While neither man looked fresh, Hurd was beginning to appear the slightly more vulnerable of the two as Rosario kept grinding forward.
Rosario began round eight on the front foot, slowly chipping away at Hurd as the man from Maryland retreated and circled in search of a right hand counter. In the ninth, Hurd landed a a pair of hooks, then a right-left and another. Rosario soaked up the pressure and backed Hurd into the ropes and opened up as the round ended.
Neither Hurd nor Rosario was showing the speed and power that characterized their pomp, and both seemed to find it hard to find openings and respond to them, but neither was prepared to back down and both sucked up every ounce of energy their veteran bodies would give them as they battled to the bell: Rosario backed Hurd to the ropes in the tenth, Hurd fought his way back to ring center, Rosario sent him back to the ropes and Hurd fought his way into the middle of the ring once more, the two men exchanging right hands as the bell rang, but both men perhaps wondering at the end about whether they could have found that extra something to give them the victory they sorely wanted.
In the co-main event, bantamweight prospect Michael Angeletti from New Orleans overcame a tough challenge from the Dominican Republic’s Geraldo Valdez to remain unbeaten with a unanimous decision over 10 rounds. Scores were 97-93 and 98-92 twice.
The pattern of the fight was set early as Valdez (16-2, 11 KOs) started fast, reaching for the taller Angeletti’s body as Angeletti sought to keep him at range. It was much the same in the second and third, Valdez attempting and struggling to impose himself on the taller Angeletti, who continued to slide out of the way as Valdez twitched to signal his intent to step forward. There was plenty of movement and activity, but both men struggled to land cleanly in the early going.
Angeletti (12-0, 7 KOs) was the first to score a clean power punch, catching Valdez with a hook as the shorter man came forward in the fifth. It was a scrappy affair to this point, although neither man could be faulted for his effort, but in the sixth and seventh, Angelettii found his range and timing and began to land more consistently. He backed Valdez up with a flurry at the end of round six, and in the eighth he had Valdez in enough trouble as he unloaded against the ropes with enough authority that referee Gene Del Bianco took a close look.
A succession of hard right hands to the body in round nine rooted Valdez to the spot, and Del Bianco looked on closely again as Angeletti switched upstairs, thudding right hands into Valdez’s jaw. Angeletti sent Valdez into the ropes at the beginning of the tenth, but the Dominican fought his way out of trouble to take the fight the distance.
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