Sharkie’s Machine
By Frank Gonzalez Jr.
Sharkie’s Machine
By Frank Gonzalez Jr.
September 4th, 2005
“Technical KO Loss Drops Braithwaite”
Saturday night favored the underdogs at the Gund Arena in
Cleveland Ohio, where heavyweight Owen Beck lost a fair and square
decision to Ray Austin on the under card before the main event, a Cruiserweight
Eliminator bout for the IBF, WBA and WBC rankings featuring Wayne Braithwaite
(21-1, 17 KO’s) against Guillermo Jones (33-3-2, 25 KO’s) turned out to be an
exciting fight.
Jones chased Braithwaite into the ropes and hammered him with right hands in a
beat down of a first round that saw Braithwaite barely survive. Under pressure,
Braithwaite reverted to the same tactics that got him beat the last time—hanging
around the ropes and taking too many punches. Instead of using his legs and the
ring to box his way out of trouble, Braithwaite made the same mistakes as when
he suffered his first loss (back in April) to the WBA, WBC Champion, Jean Marc
Mormeck.
Guillermo Jones sported a self-assured demeanor and pressured Braithwaite with
little regard for his power. Though Wayne came on a bit better in the second
round, he was missing more than he was connecting and was getting tagged
regularly. Anyone who saw this fight can easily recognize Braithwaite’s
“Achilles heel” of awful defensive skills coupled with a meltdown mentality
under pressure.
Jones’ over powering first round had Braithwaite hurt. In the second,
Braithwaite tried harder to make it a fight but still lost the round, as Jones
was able to score the more telling blows. Braithwaite’s rhythm was off and Jones
knew it.
Wayne’s confidence made a cameo appearance in the third round, as he popped
Jones with quality shots to the body and head. Jones got slower and appeared a
bit sapped of energy after his big first two rounds. It was Braithwaite’s
chance to come on strong, and to his credit, he did. Wayne won the third round
with effective punching and took less punishment than he did in the first two
rounds. The tide was turning in Braithwaite’s favor.
In the fourth, Jones came on strong. So did Braithwaite, who fought on the
outside and was effectively landing up and down combinations. As they traded
fire, the momentum shifted again, when Jones suddenly landed a few power shots
and of course, Braithwaite retreated to the worst place for him—the ropes.
Braithwaite looked to be taking a beating, but was really weathering most of
Jones’ storm, slipping and avoiding many punches. But from the view of the
referee, Braithwaite was getting hit too much. At one point, it was all Jones,
throwing unanswered bombs until the referee, Jim Villers, got involved and asked
Braithwaite to show him something, implying that he’d stop the fight otherwise.
Braithwaite continued to block and slip shots but didn’t answer with any
punches. Jones kept the pressure on, winging shots like a buzz saw until Villers
stepped between them and stopped it.
It was over. Braithwaite protested.
Immediately after the stoppage, Jones fell to the canvas and looked to be
experiencing convulsions, as his legs jerked back and forth. He didn’t look like
a man celebrating a win so much as a guy having a heart attack. It was a spooky
moment. His team jumped on him, slapping the circulation back into his legs and
attending him until the official announcement was made that Guillermo “El Felino”
Jones had won by TKO 4. Upon hearing that, Jones was helped up to his feet and a
moment later, he seemed fine.
Jones revealed during the post fight interview that in the second round, he hurt
a bone in his foot and was in great pain.
As for the stoppage, arguments can be made that it was premature—but
technically, it was the right call. The ref’s job is not only to administer the
rules and police the conduct of the combatants, but also to protect the
fighters. This wasn’t a case of bias because Jim Villers loudly warned
Braithwaite to punch back, but he did not do so. The ref did his job.
After the stoppage, Braithwaite asked Villers why he stopped the fight and
Villers said, “I told you to fight back, to show me something. You didn’t. What
was I supposed to do, let him kill you? You’ll go back to the gym, you’ll fight
again some day.”
Villers was right. And Wayne Braithwaite should have known better.
With Don King as his promoter, Guillermo Jones will be looking for a fight with
IBF “Champion,” O’Neil Bell, who many felt lost but got a gift decision win over
Dale Brown last May when the official judges showed once again why Boxing is
losing popularity with mainstream sports fans. Brown vs. Bell was just another
case for why this sport needs an authority that can police the officials and
insure propriety.
Bell vs. Jones sounds like a good match up. Watching Dale Brown outbox Bell
exposed some exploitable weaknesses. Guillermo Jones has good power and strong
will. He can certainly get better style wise but I think he has enough spirit to
best O’Neil Bell even though both have their fair share of vulnerabilities.
Cruiserweight is just shy of Heavyweight, where one punch can define a match.
Let's hope Bell vs. Jones happens and that the fighters decide the outcome
instead of the judges.
I’ve been a fan of Wayne Braithwaite over the years. He’s exciting to watch and
has always impressed me with his tenacity, big heart and killer instinct—but his
wild punching, off balance attacks and porous defense suggested that his reign
as Champion would be a short one. Braithwaite’s boxing skills need serious
refinement if he’s ever going to be a Champion again. His most glaring
shortcoming is his inability to box his way out of trouble. His lack of mental
discipline is proving unforgiving these days as he covers up and leans on the
ropes, when he should step back outside and work his jab, forcing his opponent
to reset instead of becoming target practice. This loss drops Braithwaite's
status and will require a hellacious effort to recoup the status he recently
enjoyed before losing two in a row. I wish him the best of luck.
Guillermo Jones must have studied the Mormeck vs. Braithwaite fight diligently
because he took advantage of Braithwaite in a similar, although quicker manner.
The blueprint for beating Braithwaite seems to be to press him into the ropes
and watch him fall apart.
I was impressed with Jones’ conviction in this fight but he also made a lot of
defensive mistakes and has questionable stamina. The Cruiserweight division is
just slightly more exciting than Heavyweight, which, unfortunately, is not
saying much—but I’d like to see a tournament involving
Johnny Nelson (WBO Champ), O’Neil Bell (IBF Champ) and Jean Marc Mormeck (WBA,
WBC Champ). Let Bell face Jones and the winner face Nelson. Whoever wins that
one goes on to fight Mormeck. The last man standing should be the ONE Champion
of the division. That’s the way it ought to be, instead of this system that
waters down the definition of the word Champion.
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Agree or disagree?
Comments can be emailed to Sharkie
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