The WinStar World Casino in Thackerville OK hosted yet another amazing night of boxing on Saturday, December 17, 2011. Of the seven bouts on the card, surprisingly not one ended with a knockout, though a few came close.

Valcarcel (l) Marroquin (r).

Marroquin showing signs of the battle.

Marroquin (l) lands left hook.

The main event of the night had the crowd excited from the minute Roberto Marroquin (21-1, 14 KO’s) made his way into the ring, where he took on Carlos Valcarcel (12-4-4, 5 KO’s) of San Juan P.R. From the first round, Marroquin showed the skill that has earned him his reputation, not to mention his record. He dominated each of the ten rounds with precision, speed, and force, and seemed energized by the screaming fans in the arena. In the earlier rounds, Valcarcel held his own and defended well against Marroquin’s  quick, precise punches, but from round six on, he appeared increasingly tired, understandably so. Marroquin pushed Valcarcel to the ropes in rounds 6 and 7 and pounded him mercilessly. By round ten, Marroquin seemed a little more hesitant, perhaps tired. He intermittently threw punches, many of which were dodged by Valcarcel. But a few bursts of quick punches by Marroquin took Valcarcel back to the ropes and excited the crowd further. The cheering grew enthusiastically louder as it became clear that Marroquin would win, though not with the knockout fans were hoping to see. During the last few seconds, it was hard to hear anything over the chanting fans: “Mar-ro-QUIN! Mar-ro-QUIN!” When the bell rang, he made his way to each corner of the ring, climbed on the ropes, and waved to the still-cheering crowd. Marroquin won by unanimous decision, all three judges scoring 100-90.

Hector Vasquez.

Vasquez (l) Rangel (r).

Rangel (l) Vasquez (r).

The fourth bout was between two Dallas fighters who both have a strong following, Welterweights Hector Vazquez (7-1-0, 2 KO’s) and Julio Cesar Rangel (8-5, 5 KO’s), though the fans seemed to favor Vazquez. As the rounds progressed, the intensity grew, not just between the fighters but in the crowd as well. Vazquez came out strong in round one, aggressively swinging at Rangel, who defended strategically. In round two, both seemed a little hesitant; there were fewer punches overall, though Rangel landed some well-executed blows. Both showed a bit more confidence in round three and seemed increasingly confident until the end, by which time Vazquez had a cut below his right eye and Rangel appeared tired. Vazquez had the crowd going crazy in the last thirty seconds as he punched wildly, attempting to knock Rangel to the mat, but the bell rang before he could do so. Vazquez won by unanimous decision, all three judges scoring 59-55.

Jose Roman (r) & Alejandro Rodriguez (l).

Perez from Garland (l) & Zarazua.

Jesse Roman (l) Angel Rodriguez (r).

The night was a good one for the Roman brothers of Garden Grove CA, both of whom won Saturday night. Jose Roman (13-0, 10 KO’s) and Alejandro Rodriguez (13-5, 7 KO’s) of Guadalajara Mex fought a close match in bout six, with Roman the victor by unanimous decision: 78-74, 79-73, 78-74. These two fighters were equally matched, but after eight somewhat uneventful rounds, Rodriguez lost to Roman.

Bout three was one of the more exciting fights of the night. Lightweights Jessie Roman (8-0, 5 KO’s) of Garden Grove CA and Angel Rodriguez (5-7-2, 4 KO’s) of Houston TX fought six rounds. Rodriguez surprised the crowd when he knocked Roman to the canvas in the first round, but Roman paid Rodriguez back in the second as he beat him into the ropes and kept him there. Both fighters showed amazing defense, with Rodriguez especially light on his feet, hopping in and out like a rabbit. Rodriguez had a great fourth round as he pounded Roman at the ropes, but in the end, the undefeated Roman won by unanimous decision: 58-55, 57-56, 57-56.

Heavyweights Andy Ruiz (13-0, 8 KO’s) of Mexicali Mex and Theron Johnson (5-7, 1 KO) of Chicago IL fought the sixth fight of the night. Watching Ruiz fight one can easily see why he remains undefeated. He knocked Johnson down in round one, but Johnson beat the count only to take a pounding against the ropes. The next five rounds were almost all the same: Ruiz landing punches and Johnson attempting to stay in the fight, which he did. Ruiz won by unanimous decision, all three judges scoring 60-53.

Super Lightweights Ivan Najera (5-0, 4 KO’s) of San Antonio and Jerry Fuentes (2-1, 1 KO) of Temple TX met in the ring for the second fight of the night. Ivan “Bam Bam” Najera lived up to his nickname, throwing brutally hard jabs and body shots. He knocked Fuentes to the canvas in the first round, but Fuentes beat the count. Two time-outs were called, one in round three, one in round four, when Najera’s mouthpiece went flying. “Bam Bam” Najera maintained his undefeated status, winning after four rounds by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the fight 40-35.

The evening began with Featherweights Luis Zarazua (3-0, 1 KO) of Edinburg TX and Guadalupe Perez (1-6) of Garland TX. Zarazua was the stronger fighter from the beginning, but Perez, who was knocked down in the second and third rounds, beat the count both times and proved to be a tough opponent. By the end, Zarazua's nose and Perez's mouth were gushing blood, making it the bloodiest bout of the night, despite its mere four rounds. However, Zarazua landed far more punches overall with some particularly loud body shots that left the crowd groaning at times. Zarazua won by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the fight 40-34.

Top Rank provided another night of great boxing as fans were treated to the skill, intensity, grace, and determination of some amazing boxers. That all fights went the scheduled rounds speaks to how well matched they were; fans definitely got what they came to see.