THE strange and baffling career of Guillermo Rigondeaux continues.
The Cuban been inactive since shattering James “Jazza” Dickens jaw in Cardiff almost a year ago. He only got in one curious round of action on the Andre Ward-Sergey Kovalev undercard at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas Saturday (June 17).
He manoeuvred round Moises “Chucky” Flores nimbly for the first round, ducking under the long shots the Mexican tried to strafe him with. The two were engaged in an exchange as the bell rang to end the first round. With a rapid left hook Rigondeaux slugged Flores after the bell. In a reaction that appeared slightly delayed Flores slumped to the canvas, flopping over on his back.
It didn’t look hugely convincing and suspicion mounted that he was going for a cheeky disqualification win as referee Vic Drakulich counted him out. But there was then a long pause as the referee consulted commission officials to decide what to do.
Rather than disqualify Rigondeaux they claimed, unconvincingly, that the punch had been thrown at 2-59, handing the Cuban a knockout win. It remained hard to shake the feeling that they could have deemed it an unintentional foul and ruled it a no contest.
“It’s not fair. It’s clear that the bell rang. He didn’t throw a punch the whole round. I was winning the round and he waited for after the bell to throw punch when I dropped my hands down,” Flores complained.
Rigondeaux said, “The Mexican was a brave kid. I commend him for getting in the ring with me. He has more guts than a lot of these other guys. We both threw combinations at the same time at the end of the first round. But mine was quicker and more accurate. It was only a matter of time. I fight to give the best performance to the public and all the fans. I am making everyone disappear at 122lbs. I am always available. Tell me who is next. I want all of them, and will take them out one by one. I hope the whole world sees what it is like to get in the ring with me. I am tired of the press and everyone saying I am boring. You see what happens when someone brings the fight to me.”
