Fight Recap: Richardson Hitchins Gets Dicey Decision Win

Richardson Hitchins of Brooklyn (18-0, 7 KOs) found himself in real danger against Gustavo Lemos of Buenos Aires, Argentina (29-1, 19 KOs). By the final bell, it seemed Lemos's relentless aggression had Hitchins in trouble often enough to win the upset victory.

But with an assist on the scorecards, Hitchins escaped the threat from Lemos to win a decision in the IBF junior welterweight title eliminator. Scores were 117-111 and 115-113 on two cards.

Yet another inexplicable outcome from judges who gave Hitchins a helping hand. It's hard to defend this one.

It seemed Gustavo Lemos had done enough to win, but Richardson Hitchins got the decision Saturday at the BleauLive Theater at Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Lemos forced Hitchins to engage him in all twelve rounds, seeming to be on the brink of disaster in several rounds and falling behind due to the determined effort from Lemos. Hitchins battled back to win rounds in the middle of the fight, but it seemed Lemos had done enough to win.

“I dug deep. They wanted to see me in a tough fight, to see if I had that dog in me. Did I show I had that?” asked Hitchins. “The last fight wasn't exciting. I thought this was exciting. Lemos came, and he made it exciting. He gave me some good shots. I gave him some good shots, and we gave the fans what they wanted.”

Fans Boo Richardson Hitchins After Scores Read

Fans didn't join Richardson Hitchins in celebrating his victory over Gustavo Lemos, and those on social media agreed with them. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Hitchins didn’t give all the fans watching the results they wanted and expected. Plenty of boos could be heard during the post-fight interview at the BleauLive Theater at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, hosting its first boxing event at the new venue.

Hitchins has been criticized for a lack of killer instinct in recent fights. He couldn’t put it on cruise control at any point against Lemos. The Argentinian came straight at Hitchins from the opening bell, attacking the body. Hitchins was forced to engage, and the fight was on despite Hitchins’ best efforts to slow things down.

Gustavo Lemos forced Richardson Hitchins back in the early rounds with body shots. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Lemos landed 41 power punches against just 21 for Hitchins through the first five rounds. Hitchins’ corner urged him to get busy. When Hitchins fired his sharp jab, he was effective and found room to land power shots behind many of those jabs. But he didn’t seriously hurt Lemos.

Lemos couldn’t miss with the right hook. After investing in the body shots, he buckled Hitchins’ knees several times. Hitchins deserves credit for keeping his head clear and bearing down.

“He caught me with a good shot,” admitted Hitchins. “It takes more than just one good shot to make to win a fight. I caught him with some good shots, too.”

Hitchins Fades, Lemos Presses On

Gustavo Lemos showed impressive stamina to the final bell. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

If Hitchins thought he might get Lemos to punch himself out, he was mistaken. Lemos showed impressive stamina. It appeared Hitchins was slowing down. He got caught looking at the video screen to check the time left in the round. Meanwhile, Lemos was not letting up and pouring everything he had into the final rounds.

Hitchins insisted he won easily. “I stood there and traded with him because my corner kept telling me the fight was close. But I felt like I was outboxing him, landing clean shots and boxing smart.”

CompuBox stats backed Richardson Hitchins's declaration that he was the better fighter Saturday. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Hitchins understood Lemos didn’t want to give up his undefeated record, just as he didn’t want to give up his. He called it a learning experience. “You got to be in shape, and you can't underestimate nobody. I knew Lemos was gonna come. I knew it wasn't gonna be an easy fight. I knew he would make it ugly. But like I said, we got the W. On to the next.”

Hitchins insisted he was in control of the fight and able to neutralize most of Lemos’ offense. “I felt like I won a good fight versus a solid fight. This is what the people came here to see. And they got the show they wanted.”

Hitchins: Winner of Matias vs Paro Next?

CompuBox stats are on Hitchins’ side. Hitchins landed 172 of 456 punches thrown (38%) against 161 of 581 punches for Lemos (28%).

Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn called it “a coming of age fight” for Hitchins. “He had to dig deep tonight. He had to show something he hadn’t had to show tonight. He gave everyone a great fight. He showed he’s willing to go into the trenches.”

Hitchins said he’d like to face the winner of either the Haney vs. Garcia fight or the Subriel Matias vs. Liam Paro fight, which is far more likely. Hearn also said Lemos would be back on a Matchroom card soon. Lemos left without any comments, reportedly distressed over the loss.

Diego Pacheco Wins Slugfest

Diego Pacheco got a tough test from Shawn McCalman during their fight Saturday. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Diego Pacheco of Los Angeles (21-0, 17 KOs) got a more formidable challenge than most predicted from rugged Shawn McCalman of Aurora, Colorado (15-1, 7 KOs). The power-punching Pacheco went the ten-round distance in a slugfest to retain his WBO International and USWBC Super-Middleweight titles. Scores were 98-92, 97-93, and 96-94.

Shawn McCalman showed why he came into his fight against Diego Pacheco undefeated. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

McCalman showed he wasn’t intimidated by Pacheco’s power and wasn’t coming for a paycheck. He put it to Pacheco in the early rounds with bodywork, landing ten body shots in the first four rounds, set up with snapping left jabs. McCalman won the early rounds. Pacheco took the shots well, benefitting from rounds of sparring with stablemate David Benavidez.

Diego Pacheco had to step it up after tough rounds in the early going against Shawn McCalman. Vegas. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Trainer Jose Benavidez Sr. told Pacheco to get busy. Pacheco stepped it up and started gaining ground. When he landed a hard uppercut in the seventh round, he smiled, From that point forward, the fight became an ugly slugfest. Pacheco got the better of the exchanges but had to deal with McCalman slowing down, holding and pushing Pacheco off with his elbow, drawing two warnings.

“He’s a tricky fighter, he has skills, and he got power as well,” said Pacheco. “That’s how it goes in boxing. Some fights get ugly, some fights are slower-paced, but you do what you have gotta do to get the W.

Diego Pacheco pulled away in the later rounds, but we welcome Shawn McCalman's return to the ring soon. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

“He kept coming in with his head, threw a few elbows, stepped on my foot a few times. But I listened to my corner. Fights like this teach you more than when get these guys outta there real quick. I’m happy it went the distance,” said Pacheco.

Pacheco said he’s ready for a top-ten opponent. A likely candidate is undefeated Eric Bazinyan, an Armenia-born super middleweight fighting out of Quebec.

Galal Yafai Remains Undefeated: Sunny Edwards Next?

Galal Yafai had too much for Agustin Gauto to handle on Saturday. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Galal Yafai of Birmingham, England (7-0, 5 KOs) delivered a solid effort against Agustin Gauto of Buenos Aires, Argentina (21-2, 15 KOs), winning by TKO in round 8 after rolling up too much accumulated damage on Gausto.

While the Argentinean was on his feet and had gotten to Yafai with left hooks, Yafai had won every round. Yafai suffered a nasty gash over his left eye, but it wasn’t a serious factor in the end.

Yafai gave himself only a C grade for his effort: “I compare myself to the top boys. I got too comfortable at times. But he can punch. I get too excited, and that could be my downfall in the future. I know he’s a strong guy. I’m glad it’s over.”

Galal Yafai managed to get through the end of his bout after suffering a cut from a headbutt in the sixth round. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

The 2020 Olympic gold medalist wins the WBC International Flyweight title. Yafai seems destined for a fight with Sunny Edwards, and it will be a tall order to take on his countryman. However, Yafai said he’s all about it for the right money.

And The New: Skye Nicolson Wins WBC Featherweight Title

Skye Nicolson dominated Sarah Mahfoud during their fight on Saturday. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Skye Nicolson of Queensland, Australia (10-0, 1 KO) delivered a dominant, measured performance against Sarah Mahfoud of Denmark (14-2, 3 KOs), winning a unanimous decision to become the WBC World Featherweight champion.

“I wasn’t going to be deprived of this moment. I wanted this moment in the ring,” said Nicolson, who had the interim title and could have been elevated before the win. But she wanted to earn it.

“I know what I’m capable of. My team sees what I do in the gym every day. That’s why I go into the ring as confident as I do I want to prove it to the rest of the world,” said Nicolson.

Skye Nicolson used her reach and movement to prevent Sarah Mahfoud from finding any offense. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

The fight didn’t offer many fireworks. Nicolson called Mahfoud tricky, and she knew what she had to do to win. Nicolson controlled the action with her reach advantage and solid footwork. She chose her punches carefully and delivered them accurately.

Mahfoud couldn’t get past Nicolson’s defense and had little opportunity to land anything to hurt her. The two-minute rounds helped move the fight along and kept it from being a sleeper.

Skye Nicolson celebrates her win over Sarah Mahfoud on the Matchroom boxing card at the BleauLive Theater at Fontainebleau in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Unified champion Amanda Serrano holds the three remaining featherweight titles. She dropped the WBC title when it wouldn’t sanction championship fights with three-minute rounds for women.

When asked about Serrano, Nicolson smiled and said, “It’s nothing personal, Amanda. I’m ready when you are. I find it funny she waited until I was her mandatory to decide that’s what she wanted to do.”

Marc Castro Gets Decision Over Abraham Montoya

Marc Castro's fight with Abraham Montoya was more competitive than the scorecards indicated. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Marc Castro of Fresno, California (12-0, 8 KOs) had to dig down to get the unanimous decision against Abraham Montoya of Mexicali, Mexico (22-6-1, 14 KOs). Scores were wider than the fight appeared to the viewer at 100-90, 98-92, and 97-93.

Montoya kept coming with volume, tagging Castro to the body and chin much more than he should have. Castro outlanded Montoya overall, with 223 of 658 punches thrown (34%) against 165 of 679 (24%) for Montoya.

Castro wins the WBC Continental Americas super-featherweight regional title. After several strong fights, Castro might have trouble making weight. If a weight cut hampered his performance, he may want to move up to the 135-pound division.

Undercard Wins for Navarro, Mederos

Steven Navarro's pro debut against Jose Lopez was a successful TKO win. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Steven Navarro of Los Angeles (1-0, 1 KO) scored the TKO win in the sixth round with just 18 seconds left in his professional debut against Jose Lopez of Puebla, Mexico (4-3-3). “Kid Dynamite” Navarro took after Lopez with confident combinations. He’s building a solid reputation in L-A area gyms, training at Churchill’s with Marvin Somodio. Expect to see more of Navarro this year.

Harley Mederos opened Saturday's card with a fourth-round TKO over Pedro Vicente. Photo: Ed Mulholland, Matchroom.

Harley Mederos of Brooklyn (6-0, 5 KOs) took care of his business with a quick knockdown in round one and a fourth-round TKO win over Pedro Vicente of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico (7-7-1, 2 KOs) in the welterweight division.