|
The Lenten season officially started on Wednesday with the Catholic
flock getting their foreheads tattooed with the symbolic ash, but
for super flyweight contender Z “The Dream” Gorres, it came five
days early by way of a hard-earned split draw with Armenia-born
opponent Vic Darchinyan.
For 12 rounds, Gorres figured in a Holy Rosary
of a fight with Darchinyan. The Joyful Mystery came in the second
round when Z floored Darchinyan with a clean left. Gorres, however,
failed to capitalize and Darchinyan bounced back to trade with
gusto. The fight looked pretty even in the middle rounds until
Darchinyan started getting the better of the exchanges in the
homestretch. In the last three rounds, Gorres, bleeding from a cut
sustained in the sixth stanza and running extremely low on fuel,
seemed to be on the verge of getting nailed to the cross by the
wild-swinging Darchinyan.
In a way, the split draw verdict was a miracle
ending for Gorres considering that many (this pen-pusher included)
thought he lost the fight.
The “religious experience” did not end with
the controversial verdict, though. Pontius Pilate, err, referee
Lance Revill, found himself on the receiving end of a saliva-bashing
from virtually everybody in the arena. A last-minute substitute from
New Zealand, Revill was chastised for failing to enforce the rules
as the designated third man in the ring. In the first round, Revill
ruled an obvious Gorres slip a knockdown. The highly-partisan crowd
was very vocal and physical in expressing its objection. Revill was
pelted with plastic bottles and coins within seconds after he made
the controversial call. The visibly rattled Revill never found his
rhythm, even adding salt to his own wound when he failed to call a
clear knockdown scored by Darchinyan in the ninth and eleventh
rounds.
While everybody was livid on Revill, nobody
bothered to crack the whip on the unruly crowd. For all the grandeur
of the Waterfront Hotel in Cebu City, you’d think the crowd would
observe at least an ounce of civility. Revill was instead judged and
crucified right in the opening round and never given a chance to
redeem, much less compose, himself.
The Gorres-Darchinyan bout was an International
Boxing Federation (IBF) title elimination fight, which means the
winner would have been assured of a shot at the IBF super flyweight
(or junior bantamweight) crown currently held by Dimitri Kirilov.
With the fight ending in a stalemate, this means neither Gorres nor
Darchinyan will get a title shot. A rematch will have to be arranged
to determine the next challenger for Kirilov. But here’s the
catch: With Gorres needing time to heal the hideous cut he
sustained, Darchinyan might just end up rubbing mitts with Kirilov,
who is already due for a mandatory defense. The winner of the
Kirilov-Darchinyan fight could then be mandated to meet Gorres.
The draw with Gorres is the first for Darchinyan,
whose record now stands 29-1-2 with 23 knockouts. Once the most
feared flyweight (112 pounds) in the world, the “Raging Bull”
has not been the same fighter since he was tamed in five rounds by
Nonito Donaire in July. He has struggled big time in his last two
fights—against Filipinos Federico Catubay and Gorres.
At age 32, the expiry date on Darchinyan’s
boxing career is arguably fast approaching. Moreover, at the heavier
super flyweight division (115 pounds), Darchinyan’s power is
diminishing faster than the value of the U.S. dollar.
Gorres, on the other hand, has a lot of
soul-searching to do this Lenten season. Z can be a world
champion—if world title fights are scheduled for only six rounds.
Gorres will have to jack his roadwork by an extra mile to improve
his stamina. In the last few rounds against Darchinyan, Z resembled
a condemned building ready to fall with one more direct hit from the
wrecking ball.
For what it’s worth, Gorres gets to live—and
hopefully improve—for another fight.
Of course, this “religious” narrative will
not be complete without mentioning one redeeming scenario. Filipino
judge Jonathan Davis, unmindful of the possibility of being stoned
to death by the crowd, scored the fight as he saw it—114-112 for
Darchinyan.
Hallelujah!
___
For comments, the writer can be reached at
atty_eduardo@yahoo.com.
|
