Boxing News

Vazquez exacts revenge against Marquez

Aug 5, 2007, 10:57 GMT

Hidalgo, TX - Israel Vazquez regained the WBC super bantamweight belt with a six round technical knockout of Rafael Marquez at the Dodge Arena Saturday.

The bout was a rematch from March 3 this year, which ended when Vazquez could not come out for the eighth round after suffering a nose injury.

After knocking down Marquez (37-4, 33 KOs) early in the sixth round, Vazquez (42-4, 31 KOs) continued to attack and landed a flurry of punches before referee Guadalupe Garcia stopped the fight at the 1:16 mark. The fight was a back-and-forth slugfest from the first round on and the stoppage may have been premature since Marquez, although seemingly vulnerable, was still defending himself.

Marquez, 32, lost for the first time since November 2000 against unheralded Genaro Garcia, a span of 17 fights.

Marquez-Vazquez could likely turn into a trilogy because of the exhilarating, toe-to-toe, give-and-take action the two have provided in each of their fights.

Celestino Caballero retained his WBA super bantamweight title with a 12-round unanimous decision over Jorge Lacierva.

Caballero (27-2, 18 KOs), a 31-year-old left-hander from Panama, was unimpressive in his fourth title defense. The Mexican challenger Lacierva initiated the action in at least the first three rounds while landing many big punches. Caballero, who had a six-inch height advantage, did rally late but received shockingly favorable scores of 115-112, 116-111 and 116-110.

The fight was a sloppy one. Referee Laurence Cole deducted a point from Lacierva (32-7-6, 22 KOs) in the sixth round after he warned the 29-year-old for a low blow and hitting behind the head earlier in the fight. Caballero, an unorthodox southpaw, was warned in the 10th for both holding and pushing.

© 2007 The Sports Network