Robert
”
The Ghost
”
Guerrero (27-1-1) defeated Joel Casamayor (37-5-1) by unanimous
decision from inside Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas on
Saturday night.
LAS VEGAS – In the biggest fight of his career, Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero was larger than life.
With his wife Casey sitting ringside at a bout for the first time since her February bone marrow transplant, Guerrero broke down Joel Casamayor (37-5-1) for unanimous decision win from inside Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
“You know, it was a good win, a huge win for me against one of the craftiest lefties out there,” Guerrero said post fight, still bouncing with energy amid a jubilant camp in the locker room.
Aside from the inevitable career implications that will assuredly stem from this victory – the Ghost is ardent about getting a lightweight title shot – the triumph by Guerrero reached far beyond the ropes.
With Casey, who is continuously making positive progress in her battle with Leukemia, in attendance the win had special written all over it.
“I told him congratulations and that I was proud of him,” said a relieved Casey Guerrero, who added that she was pretty fidgety throughout the fight. “Usually I have gum to chomp on (during a fight). I didn’t have any this time.”
A patient Guerrero – who recorded his first junior welterweight victory – avoided being sucked into the shifty veteran’s awkward, and often times confusing antics, to earn the one-sided decision (98-89, 98-89, 97-90.)
“Too bad we couldn’t knock him out,” Robert’s father and trainer Ruben Guerrero said. “We didn’t have to. (Robert) put him down twice. (Casamayor said he came in in the best shape, but we were in shape too.”
Under the bright lights of a near-capacity crowd, Guerrero delivered a precise, calculated and meticulous performance, Guerrero (27-1-1) rarely shied away from his game plan, staying defensive yet remaining technically sound in his attack.
“As a veteran, guys like him, are smart,” Guerrero said. “He will wait, try to take you into deep waters and land a big shot.”
Guerrero, the visibly stronger of the two southpaws, made his presence felt early and often. Guerrero controlled and dictated the bout through the first two rounds before Casamayor showed any eagerness to box.
“Right out of the gate I hit him and I hurt him, and all he wanted to do was survive,” Guerrero said.
Casamayor spent a majority of the first three rounds looking more like a linebacker blitzing a quarterback than a boxer.
“I felt that the way he was moving, and the way I was sticking my jab and using my reach, I could tell he didn’t want to fight,” Guerrero said.
After a feel-it-out first round, Guerrero came out swinging in the second. Casamayor was deducted a point for grabbing/wrestling, but not succumbing to the distraction, Guerrero landed a vicious right cross, which sent the 39-year-old into the ropes then down into Guerrero’s legs, face first.
Casamayor found his footing in the third and fourth rounds, connecting with a pair of solid left jabs in each.
Not phased, Guerrero continued to execute according to what he wanted to do and re-asserted his authority.
“He was wanting me to engage on him so he could counterpunch me, so I had to be smart,” Guerrero said. “But I got him out of that and dominated the fight.”
In order to combat Casamayor, who is considered among boxing insiders as one of the dirtiest fighters in the business. Guerrero stayed tactical in his approach, which at times frustrated boisterous fans itching for a knockout.
“You just can’t go in there and rush a crafty fighter like Casamayor because he is always dangerous,” Golden Boy Promotions president Oscar De La Hoya said after the bout. “(Robert) did a wonderful job. He obviously gained more experience for the future champions he’ll be facing.”
Casamayor, however, delivered a parting gift to the 27-year-old Gilroy native, catching the fleet-footed Guerrero with a lightning-fast over-hand right that sent The Ghost to his knee midway through the 10th and final round.
“He landed a good shot on me, but I wasn’t hurt,” Guerrero said. “That was my fault. I fell asleep.”
In fact, once Guerrero’s left knee hit the canvas, a coy grin appeared on his face.
With a victory in his debut at 140 pounds, Guerrero said he will focus his attention on the lightweight division (135) and a possible head-to-head with the night’s main event winner and WBA and WBO lightweight titleholder.
“Down at 135 pounds hopefully I can get a shot at Marquez,” Guerrero said.
Despite shouts of “Guerrero and Marquez” bellowed out during the post-fight news conference, Marquez did not address the matter.
Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schafer outlined a possible title-fight scenario with Guerrero going against WBO interim lightweight titleholder Michael Katsidis.
“He wants to be in big fights and he is going to get into big fights,” Schafer said. “Maybe a fight against Katsidis if Marquez decides to move up (to 140) would be a great fight for him. You are going to have the best two lightweights fighting each other. That’s the kind of fight we want to do.”
NOTES: Prior to Guerrero’s fight, HBO lost its TV feed, losing power in the control truck. The fight was delayed about 15 minutes before resuming.
– In the evening’s main event, Juan Manuel Marquez defeated Juan Diaz by unanimous decision to retain his WBA and WBO lightweight titles. A furious flow of punches highlighted the 12-round rivalry bout that went a few seconds beyond the final bell. Marquez knocked out Diaz in the pair’s first fight in 2009.
– The first fight of the night went to Jorge Linares of Venezuela, who withstood a late–round charge from Rocky Juarez for a unanimous decision victory.
Linares staggered Juarez with a left upper cut in the fifth round, sending Juarez stumbling backward and to the mat. Juarez connected with a strong right cross in the ninth, prompting Linares to respond with a mockingly yet delightful tap dance.
– In the final undercard bout before the main event of Juan Manual Marquez and Juan Diaz, Dmitry Pirog rocked Daniel Jacobs with a powerful right at 57 seconds of the fifth round, flattening him on the mat to earn the WBO middleweight world title via technical knockout.
