By Rey Anthony: Las Vegas – All it took was one straight right to the jaw of Esteban Almaraz (10-5-0 4KO) at around the halfway mark of the first round of this welterweight showdown at the Hard Rock hotel and casino for prospect Yordenis Ugas (11-0-0 5KO) to dictate the pace of the fight and stay undefeated in his professional career.
The fight took place as an undercard for the Teon Kennedy and Chris Martin fight last night January 13, 2012 that was also televised under ESPN’s Friday Night Fights series.
Cuban born Ugas who currently lives in Miami, Florida was a member of the national Cuban team. He is a bronze medalist in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Esteban Almaraz also happened to be a warrior by heart. He is a US Army veteran who served 1 year in Iraq.
The first couple of rounds showed Ugas being careful picking his punches. His solid jabs, right hand and one-two combination continuously gave Almaraz trouble throughout the night. It was not until the 6th round when Almaraz, probably felt the need to step up his game. His barrage of punches prompted Ugas to be on the defense that ESPN announcer Teddy Atlas described as “Too patient and too respectful.”
Ugas showed himself again during the 7th round after appearing to have gotten an earful from his corner during the break. It was also a historic round for him because it was his first fight that lasted for more than 6 rounds. He fought around 385 fights in about 30 countries during his amateur career.
The final round did not do Almaraz any favor. The right side of his face started bleeding from a punch and was aggravated by an accidental head butt that prompted referee Joe Cortez to call time at around the 1:11 mark to have the Doctor look at Almaraz.
The fight ended with a clear unanimous decision win Yordeni Ugas.