(Photo:
Yahoo's The Contender Page)
Last week we saw a rematch of the ages, as an extra two rounds were enough to make Peter the first entrant into the finals at Caesar's Palace. This week, Jesse Brinkley takes on Sergio Mora to find out who will join Peter.
The show before the fight was nothing that important; rehashing Peter/Alfonso II, hyping up this fight, stressing how much was on the line, thus there isn't any specific reason to go into details.
In the first round, Sergio showed a very unorthodox style. He isn't afraid to lunge with that jab. They kept a steady pace, which turned out to hurt Jesse more because it gave Sergio more time to strike. He really does move like a snake. Jesse should have pushed the envelope here in order to get inside, because he won't win if he allows Sergio stay at a distance. Sergio wins the round.
Tommy yelled at Jesse to go to work, and that's precisely what he did in the second round. Jesee was a little more attentive to Sergio's movements, and once Sergio lunged forward, Jesse took advantage by getting in some good body shots, and his patented uppercuts. Remember; he knocked out Anthony Bosante with a couple of those a few weeks ago. Jesse did a good job tying up Sergio long enough to get in some good combinations. Round goes to Jesse.
For some reason, Jesse didn't continue with what he was doing. Once again, he tried to match punches with Sergio and let him dictate the fight. Sergio stood there for a second, and at the right opportunity he lunged in with a short uppercut that stunned Jesse with a great right cross. Sergio would follow up on that with a good combination, and before you know it, Jesse has lost the round.
In Round 4, Jesse starts off doing the same thing, and this time Sergio throws a great right hand that hurts him. Sergio follows that up with a barrage of punches. Jesse gets his marbles back and gets inside and throws a couple of body shots and an uppercut, but I don't think it was enough to win the round. Another round for Sergio.
Now Jesse starts to realize he must make this a brawl, and starts going after Sergio. Sergio's accuracy is so sharp though, and Sergio is getting the better of the exchange. However Jesse gets in a good jab and follows it up with a combination that sends Sergio to the ropes. Jesse showed his power here, and it'll make Sergio think twice about mixing it up again. I got this as a 10-10 round; it could have went either way.
Just as I stated, Sergio keeps his distance from Jesse. He told Jeremy, his corner, that Jesse punches very hard. He goes out in round six and works his magic, getting some good jabs in and striking from a distance. Jesse once again does not try to force his way into Sergio, and a decent flurry at the end of this round locks it up for Sergio. Jesse's going to need a knockout. He's needed a knockout before in a fight, and we know what happened then.
The difference between a winner and a loser is how you finish the fight. A winner knows when he's winning the fight and acts accordingly. Anthony Bosante didn't fight like he was winning and was knocked silly. Sergio however fought a smart last round, stayed away from all of Jesse's power shots and dodged around the ring, just taking a punch when needed.
So Jesse won the round, but it was obvious to everyone in the arena that Sergio won this one on points. And he did through a unaminous decision. The fact is, Sergio won by fighting his kind of fight. Jesse never fought his, and never tried to. Sergio was able to stand back, take his time and think about what he was going to do, and was able to outbox Jesse with his speed. Sergio knew as the fight progressed what he could and couldn't do. Jesse never adjusted, and fought the same way in the first round that he did in the seventh.
At Caesar's, Sergio's going to have problems with Peter. Peter's not known for his strength, but he's going to push the envelope every round, and Sergio's conditioning will come in play. Sergio won't have time to step back and flick the jab or lunge in with an uppercut or cross because Peter will already be on him. Sergio does have a little power behind his punches, so he's going to have to sting Peter in order to limit his advances.
The Contender $1,000,000 finals bout is
TUESDAY NIGHT on NBC. I question the logic of having this two hour special at the same time as the American Idol finals, but I guess since The Contender has not been renewed for next season NBC doesn't really care about the number of this final and figures no one will watch it. That's a shame because despite the low numbers I have enjoyed these fights.
And remember, it's two fights, as Jesse faces Alfonso for the "bronze". That should be a decent fight.
I will LIVEBLOG the Final. Come back to my site while you're watching the fight, or feel free to check out what I think about the show afterwards. It should be a good night and some good fights. Also, we finally get to see unedited fights. Thank goodness.
