As far as this particular weekend goes, there’s only one Miguel Cotto. But since Puerto Rico’s most celebrated active fighter had just performed a week ago, Nuyoricans gladly settled for one of the best pure boxers ever from La Isla Del Encanto to perform on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day Parade.

In the end, undefeated lineal junior flyweight champion Ivan “Iron Boy” Calderon was as effective in entertaining the crowd as he was in keeping his “0” intact, putting on a clinic in soundly outpointing determined Mexican challenger Jesus Iribe over twelve rounds at MSG’s The Theatre in New York City.

Scores were 118-109 (twice) and 116-111 for the championship fight, which served as the main event of a “Top Rank Live” broadcast that aired on Fox Sports and its affiliates.

Normally accustomed to far more action on this particular weekend, it was evident early on that the Boricuas on hand in attendance weren’t terribly interested in a pure boxing display, no matter whom was on the delivering end. The boo birds came raining down early, but not enough to cause Calderon to change up, fighting for the win rather than for the spirit of the weekend.

His superior skill set wasn’t enough to prevent his ass from touching the canvas, however. Iribe scored a surprise knockdown midway through the second round, dropping Calderon with a right hand straight down the pipe. Calderon shook it off as he took the mandatory eight count, but found himself in the rare position of being behind on the scorecards two rounds into a prize fight.

The knockdown seemed to have revived the Puerto Rican, who returned to boxing in the third, maintaining the necessary distance to cause Iribe to often fall short with his punches. The fight strategy didn’t sit particularly well with the crowd on hand, but nevertheless proved to be effective.

More boos filled the arena in the fourth, though the jeers quickly turned to cheers once Calderon began landing punches with authority (relatively speaking, anyway). A counter right hook landed flush for the Puerto Rican seconds after sliding back ever so slightly to cause Iribe to catch air with an attempted combination upstairs.

The middle rounds featured both Calderon at his best but also large points of frustration from those expecting more in the way of action. The defending champion put on a boxing clinic, doing a superb job of playing “hit and don’t get hit.” What was lacking was sustained action, as it was a punch or two at a time before darting away in efforts to avoid the incoming.

Calderon decided to change up in the eighth round, sticking around a second or two longer to plant his feet and land in combination. Give a little, get a little – once the crowd caught a whiff of the commitment, they greater appreciated his superb boxing skills, cheering his ability to avoid most of what Iribe threw at him while peppering the Mexican with straight lefts and right hooks in return.

Crowd participation increased as the rounds wore on, even chanting in unison whenever Calderon slipped a punch, which was quite often. Chants of “Cal-De-Ron!” filled the Theatre in the championship rounds, but not before the crowd got on Iribe for a low blow that was severe enough to draw a stern warning from referee Benji Esteves.

The final round was a reminder to boxing fans both in attendance and watching at home on Fox Sports as to why Calderon is often referred to as the best pure boxer of his generation.

Right jab, straight left, slip out of the way. Plant feet, rinse and repeat. Oohs and ahhs were all that could be offered, as those in attendance were simply in awe of Calderon’s ability, that late in the fight and this deep into his career. Even in signs of slowing down career wise, he still finds ways to dazzle.

Calderon improves to 34-0-1 (6KO) with the win, his first of the year and in fact his first right in nine months. Iribe slips to 16-7-5 (10KO), losing in his first fight in the Lower 48, with his lone other stateside appearance coming last year in Hawaii in a failed title bid against Brian Viloria.

As Calderon begins to wind down his potentially Hall of Fame career, it is hoped that the current lineal junior flyweight champion looks toward the rest of the best fighters in division, including promotional stable mate and fellow beltholder Giovanni Segura.

For now, he continues to add to his resume.

This win marked the sixth successful defense of the lineal title he won nearly three years ago, and 19th title fight win overall in a career that appears destined for the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Should they retire at roughly the same time, it can be argued that writers would be more inclined to look in the direction of Cotto than Calderon should it come down to that. It’s always easier to remember the more exciting fighter, and it can also be easily argued that Cotto also boasts the superior competition level, even if not always coming out on top.

While Cotto also remains the first choice to headline on a weekend such as this, Ivan Calderon made it very easy for fans to gladly accept the alternative.

TELEVISED UNDERCARD

It was a night of firsts for 2008 Puerto Rican Olympian and super flyweight newcomer McWilliams Arroyo, though not many of them in a good way.

Fighting for the second time in two weeks, Arroyo bit off a little more than he can chew, suffering a knockdown en route to losing a four-round decision to Japanese newcomer Takashi Okada in his first fight in the United States.

Arroyo came out determined in the opening round, but Okada refused to accept the role of opponent on this night. A flash knockdown occurred in the second round, with Arroyo falling to the deck as a result of failing to maintain his balance after taking a combination on the inside.

The first knockdown of his young career was enough to provide the margin of difference on the scorecards. Final tallies of 38-37 (twice) and 39-36 gave Okada the upset as he advanced to 2-0-1 (1KO). Arroyo dips to 3-1 (3KO), suffering his first loss in his stateside debut and also the first time in which he didn’t share a card with twin brother McJoe Arroyo.

American soldier Steven Badgley anticipated a far better pro debut than what actually transpired, suffering two knockdowns en route to a first round stoppage loss to Angel Gonzalez (1-2-1, 1KO). The time was 1:55 of the opening round.

In a bout destined to go to the scorecards, undefeated junior welterweight prospect Gabriel Bracero (10-0, 0KO) cruised to a six-round unanimous decision over Julias Edmonds (7-7, 0KO). Scores were 60-54 across the board for Bracero, who has won five straight since returning to the ring last year following a seven-year hiatus.

The show was presented by Top Rank, Inc.


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