24.4.09

Alexander vs. Rodriguez: Round by Round

Tonight's card is in St. Louis, Missouri. There is one fight on the televised undercard and it's between Devon Alexander and Jesus Rodriguez at junior welterweight. Alexander is known for being a strong puncher and Rodriguez will most likely be the aggressor. Rodriguez is 19-3 while Alexander is undefeated with a record of 17-0. Alexander is the fan favorite, being born in St. Louis.

Round 1
Alexander throws the first punch and it's a jab. Rodriguez lunges in and throws two hooks. Alexander backs him off with a stiff jab. Alexander's corner is telling him to relax. Alexander has been the aggressor in the first. He hasn't landed many punches to put Rodriguez in any danger. Alexander gets hit with a right hand and goes down awkwardly. The ref calls it a slip. It's tough to call, but Alexander looks fine.

Spartan117: 10-9 Alexander

Round 2
Alexander keeps the punch output up. Rodriguez fights back. Alexander lands a great right hand and Rodriguez is forced to back up. Alexander's speed looks great. Rodriguez is staying very low. He looks like Alexander's southpaw stance is confusing him. They tie up in the middle of the ring but continue to throw while clinched. Rodriguez has been holding more in round 2.

Spartan117: 10-9 Alexander

Round 3
Rodriguez comes out swinging hard. Alexander tries to keep him back and matches his intensity. Alexander unleashes a combo to the body, then one to the head. Rodriguez isn't landing enough to win these rounds. Alexander is landing the more meaningful punches. Alexander lands a big left hand and the crowd cheers. Rodriguez continues to clinch. Alexander is landing some lasers here. Rodriguez gets crushed with a right-left combo and gets knocked off balance. After the bell, Alexander's corner complains to the ref about Rodriguez's holding.

Spartan117: 10-9 Alexander

Round 4
Rodriguez lands a good jab but Alexander comes forward. Rodriguez lands two more good shots. Alexander lands a jab to the body and another to the head. Alexander throws and lands a great combo of hooks upstairs. Rodriguez continues to push and hold with no warnings from the ref. Rodriguez lands an uppercut. They trade punches to the body. Another round for Alexander, but not his best.

Spartan117: 10-9 Alexander

Round 5
Alexander's trainer gives him a big motivational speech between rounds. He wants to see him get more aggressive. Alexander goes to work but doesn't change his game plan at all or apply any more pressure. Rodriguez finally gets warned for pushing. Alexander throws a flurry but nothing lands cleanly. Rodriguez throws a hook and uppercut and lands the hook. Rodriguez lands his best punch of the night with a straight right hand. Rodriguez is keeping his head so low. He's basically fighting while facing the floor.

Spartan117: 10-9 Alexander

Round 6
Alexander goes back to the jab. Rodriguez counters with a straight left that lands. Alexander has been grunting after every punch which makes them look better than they actually are. Alexander's punches have been mostly ineffective. Rodriguez lands another left hand. Alexander lands a hook set up by a jab to the head. Rodriguez throws and lands to the body. They exchange combos and Alexander lands the majority. Rodriguez comes back with a right hand.

Spartan117: 10-9 Rodriguez

Round 7
Alexander lands a jab and Rodriguez stumbles. Rodriguez continues to lead with his head. Alexander lands a left hook. The commentators mention that Alexander is a good fighter but just hasn't faced any quality opponents, so he actually could be considered a decent welterweight. Alexander lands two power left hands, his best of the night. Rodriguez walks through it but clinches. The crowd is really into this.

Spartan117: 10-9 Alexander

Round 8
Alexander goes back to the jab. He's starting to land more accurate punches now. I think he's finally getting comfortable in there. Rodriguez isn't doing much at all. Alexander lands a left hook and Rodriguez goes down. He complains the the punch was in the back of the head but that was only because he fights with his head completely down. He makes it up and looks at his corner for a while before he goes back in to fight. Alexander lands another great left hand. Rodriguez staggers but looks fine now. This fight should be stopped, not because Rodriguez is hurt but because he's just not doing anything.

Spartan117: 10-8 Alexander

Round 9
Rodriguez's corner complains that the punch that caused the knockdown was to the back of the head. The ref explains that it's because of Rodriguez's fighting style, which is true. Alexander lands another great left hand and Rodriguez goes down to a knee again. He's not getting up. It's over.

The winner by KO at 58 seconds of Round 9... Devon Alexander.
Posted by spartan117

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