Jose Martinez D10 Israel Gonzalez ... In the Ring City co-feature in Puerto Rico, Jose “Chiquiro” Martinez (21-1-3, 14 KOs) of Mayaguez, P.R. and Israel Gonzalez (26-4-1, 11 KOs) of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, fought to a majority draw in their ten-round bantamweight affair. While one ringside judge gave Gonzalez, 24, the edge on the scorecards (96-94), the remaining two judges scored it identically at 95-95. Ring City’s unofficial scorer Steve Smoger had Gonzalez edging the hometown fighter 97-93.
“I felt his punches, but I was the superior fighter tonight,” said Gonzalez. “He might have won three rounds but it’s OK. I’m thankful to Puerto Rico and all of the people that gave me an opportunity to be here.”
The 28-year-old Martinez did his best work on the inside as he attempted to neutralize the five-inch reach advantage of the younger Gonzalez and led on two of the scorecards through the midway point of the fight. Meanwhile, Gonzalez flashed excellent hand speed in the back-and-forth affair and stole many of the later rounds when he found his second wind. This marked the third draw for Martinez over his last seven fights and the first for Gonzalez.
“I feel happy, satisfied with the work I did,” said Martinez. “I understand that I was fighting against a strong opponent and that I won. I pushed more. I was on top of him, but these things happen in boxing. Now it’s a matter of continuing to train, maintain myself and seek that title opportunity.”
Joe Ward W6 Marco Delgado... Ireland’s Joe Ward (3-1, 2 KOs) avenged his only professional loss with a dominating unanimous decision victory over Marco Delgado (7-2, 5 KOs) in their six-round light heavyweight tilt. In October 2019, the 15-time Irish National Champion Ward faced Delgado in his professional debut and suffered a dislocated kneecap which led to a technical knockout victory for the Turlock, Calif. native. Under the tutelage of two-division world champion Joey Gamache, the 29-year-old Ward displayed his amateur pedigree as he attempts to fast-track his pro career.
Alma Ibarra W8 Maricela Cornejo... In the second fight of the telecast, Alma Ibarra (7-1, 4 KOs) earned a hard-fought unanimous decision over Maricela Cornejo (13-4, 5 KOs) in an eight-round middleweight fight. Two of the ringside judges scored seven rounds for Ibarra (79-73) while the third saw it 77-75 for the winner. Ibarra, who hails from Monterrey, Mexico, brought the fight to the Los Angeles native throughout the fight and was the far busier fighter.
“Now the world knows who Alma Ibarra is and what she is made of,” said the victor. “To everyone, I was a stranger. And to fight against someone who is very recognized worldwide in Maricela Cornejo and beat her, this opened many doors for us.”
Ibarra, 32, returned from a 16-month layoff following her first professional defeat against Raquel Miller in 2019. Ibarra, who had a successful amateur career, looked comfortable as she commanded the ring against the seasoned professional in 33-year-old Cornejo. Ibarra, a natural welterweight, was fighting at the heaviest weight of her career (156 lbs.).
“I felt very good, very strong, as this is a division that I am not used to,” said Ibarra. “I always fight in lower divisions, we had to go up two divisions to take this great opportunity, and well, I think we were not wrong to take this risk.”
MORE RESULTS
Angel Acosta (22-2, 21 KOs) of Barrio Obrero Santurce, Puerto Rico, earned a victory on the scorecards for the first time in his professional career, earning a unanimous decision over Gilberto Mendoza (17-10-3, 8 KOs) of Baja California, Mexico, in an eight-round super flyweight fight...
Fighting in his hometown of Salinas, Edwin Valentin (10-0, 9 KOs) remained perfect with a fifth-round technical knockout victory over fellow Puerto Rican Hector Marengo (7-15-4, 4 KOs)...
In the opening fight of the evening, Jose Roman (11-0, 5 KOs) of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, bested Roque Junco (10-8-1, 6 KOs) via unanimous decision in an eight-round welterweight fight. source for all results: ring city
