Leo Santa Cruz Vs. Abner Mares Results & Highlights: Santa Cruz Wears Down

“He came right at me but we figured him out and we got the win”, Santa Cruz said after the fight.

Once the initial frenzy wore off, Santa Cruz began to control the bout with a sharp jab from his superior reach.

While his run of opponents lately ranged from mediocre to god very bad, his performances remained stuck somewhere in the middle. We can’t just fight hard fights all the time.

Although this is only Santa Cruz’s second featherweight fight, both boxers already rank with Nicholas Walters, Vasyl Lomachenko and Gary Russell Jr.as the biggest names in the 126-pound division.

Another factor to monitor in this fight is whether Abner Mares will come out with confidence and the demeanour of a fighter who has far more experience at the elite level.

At the end of the fight Santa Cruz had thrown 1057 punches and Mares had thrown 980. However, to his recognition, Abner Mares never stopped trying and gave it all he had every round, and that should be respected to the mountain tops.

The first three rounds were characterized by merciless exchanges between the two fighters: the straights and counters of Santa Cruz vs. the combination flurries of Mares. Against Mares, he won’t take shots for fighting an easy opponent. I knew it was going to be a tough fight. Even former Laker and current Clipper Wesley Johnson, sitting ringside, was moved to his feet by the endless action. It’s the style that’s most comfortable to him.

For one night, Santa Cruz and Mares did their best to conjure up those memories at Staples Center in front of a crowd of 13,109. Santa Cruz fought on the same card at the famed StubHub Center in August 2013, winning the WBC super bantamweight title by stopping Victor Terrazas.

“Fight by fight, I’ve been learning and picking up new things”, Santa Cruz said. He was still fighting his ass off, but with a bit of resignation in his eyes. He wasn’t going to fade.

Mares’ strategy made sense-bring it to Santa Cruz, hurt Santa Cruz, take him to places he’s never been before-even though it was unsuccessful. Matched correctly, he’s pure entertainment. The problem was the man in the opposite corner.

Los Angeles boxing fans had eagerly anticipated this matchup for several years. Points were deducted from Batista three times over the third and fourth rounds before another low blow in the fifth resulted in the stoppage. But he was no match for the younger, taller, fresher Leo Santa Cruz.

It’s one of the principal mechanics any fighter should possess really, but a specialty to those who like to fight in close and duke it out. His punches were coming in bunches. Either way, despite a less-than-stellar knockout percentage, Santa Cruz remains a must-see.

Let’s just hope he stays here.

Welp. We were afraid that Ricardo Mayorga was going to look like a chubby old guy cashing in one last paycheck on Saturday night. I’m here to fight the best. Still, nobody came out looking particularly good here. “I want the big fights”. He destroyed Vernon Forrest, and then beat him in the rematch. The fervor carried into the stands as a series of fights broke out; they were singing to the tune of Mexican songs as they waited for the scores to be announced. It just proves that there’s always room for a raving lunatic in boxing. “I was surprised when I got dropped, but I still felt mentally well”.

ESPN analyst Teddy Atlas is clearly out of his mind, but there’s something soothing to me in his delivery. I worked and used my jab. “My corner told me that if I boxed him, I can win”. I loved the revelation about Santa Cruz shaking his right hand, something I’m pretty sure most of us on twitter have discussed quite frequently over the last three years or so.