By Jake Donovan

Former flyweight titlist and 2004 US Olympian Eric Morel continues on the comeback trail, racking up his third straight win. The latest came in a three round destruction of Miami-based Colombian bantamweight Jose Garcia Bernal in the Telefutura main event, which aired live from Toa Baja, Puerto Rico.

The bout never had a chance of being competitive, but that didn’t prevent Morel from taking his time in measuring up Bernal, which made for a tactical first round, though still fought at a brisk pace.

Things picked up in the second, which for all intent and purposes was the beginning of the end. Bernal was repeatedly shook by combinations from Morel, and would go down for the first of three times in the bout from a straight right hand. The transplanted Colombian took the eight count and recovered well enough to make it out of the round, but was probably better off staying on the deck.

Sensing the end was near, Morel didn’t waste anytime in the third, immediately attacking Bernal. Morel scored two knockdowns, both the result of a flurry of head shots. Referee Roberto Ramirez Jr opted to immediately wave off the bout without a count following the second knockdown of the round.

The official time was 0:45 of the third round.

Morel runs his record to 38-2 (20KO) with the win, his third straight following his release from prison last summer. All three fights have taken place in 2008, in fact in a span of just 3 ½ months. Tonight’s bout was little more than a test run to see how well he would carry a little extra weight on his normally lean frame. Apparently, it was a good fit: Morel mentioned in the post-fight that he felt strong, and planned to continue his comeback in the super bantamweight division.

Such a move would be three divisions above his most successful weight class, as he reigned as a flyweight titlist for more than three years. His title-winning effort came in a breakthrough performance in the infant stages of the now-defunct HBO KO Nation series, dominating Sornpichai Kratindaenggym over 12 rounds. Six defenses would follow before succumbing to one-time road warrior Lorenzo Parra in late 2003.

Many believed Morel to be on the wrong side of his prime from that point forward, with his dismal showing against Martin Castillo 15 months later offered as further proof. The Castillo loss was his last fight before being sentenced in October 2005 after pleading no lo contendre to sexually assault of a minor.

The Madison, WI-based Puerto Rican is doing his best to put the past behind him, but at age 32 could be facing an uphill battle in the talent-rich super bantamweight division, which includes two of the sport’s very best in Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez. After the dynamic duo follows, among others, Celestino Caballero, Steve Molitor, Daniel Ponce de Leon, Juan Manuel Lopez and Jhonny Gonzalez. Hardly a soft touch among the top ten, if and when Morel is once again ready to compete on that level.

Chances are Bernal will never be competitive beyond the club level. The transplanted Colombian falls to 27-12-1 (18KO), having now lost four straight and eight of his last ten.

Much like the main event, the co-feature stayed true to the scouting report in becoming the mismatch as was suggested on paper. Dominican super bantamweight Marcos “El Tigre” Jimenez had his way with struggling Mexican journeyman Baudel Cardenas, scoring a fourth round body shot knockout,

Nothing at all happened through the first three rounds. Jimenez jabbed from the outside, with an occasional left hook thrown (and often missing), while Cardenas simply offered nothing. It wasn’t until late in the fourth round did Jimenez offer something worth typing about.

Consecutive left hooks to the body froze Cardenas long enough to get clipped with a left hook upstairs. The Mexican did a stutter step in trying to right himself before taking one last left hook downstairs, sending him crumbling to the canvas. Referee Roberto Ramirez Jr counted him out at the 2:59 mark of round four.

Jimenez wins his third straight bout in advancing to 13-1 (8KO). It was his second straight 4th round knockout, both taking place in El Coliseo Antonio R. Barcelo in a span of four weeks.

The downward spiral continues for Cardenas, who tumbles to 17-14-2 (6KO) in losing his fifth straight. The Mexican boasts an alias of Mr. KO, which partially rings true – it was his third consecutive stoppage loss, with the three bouts lasting a total of nine rounds.

With plenty of time to fill, a pair of hometown fighters made their way to the telecast.

The swing bout featured local lightweight Orlando Felix Negron (10-0, 3KO), who made the most of the unexpected airtime in outlasting Arroyo (PR) trial horse Carlos Claudio (8-3-1, 2KO) en route to a unanimous decision. It was a spirited battle, but with Felix-Negron a step ahead throughout. Scores were 59-55 across the board.

Four weeks after scoring a huge upset with a highlight reel first round knockout in this very same arena for his first professional win, hometown bantamweight journeyman Jesse Padilla (1-3-2, 1KO) once again exceeded expectations in holding countryman Pedro Hernandez (4-2-1, 2KO) to a four round majority draw. Padilla won on the lone uneven card, by score of 39-37, but was overruled by the other two judges who saw things 38-38.

The show was presented by Top Rank and Puerto Rico Best Boxing.
 
Jake Donovan is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the Tennessee Boxing Advisory Board. Contact Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com.