ESPN FNF Special Edition: Ray Beltran outslugs Ji-Hoon Kim in Las Vegas

photo credit: Chris Farina/Top Rank

In Thursday night's ESPN Friday Night Fights Special Edition main event, NABF lightweight champion Ray Beltran retained his belt via a 98-92, 98-92 and 97-94 unanimous decision victory over the very game Ji-Hoon Kim at The Mirage Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. The wide margin in the scorecards does not mirror the brawl that ensued right after the opening bell, when both fighters traded knockdowns to usher the 10-round firefight.

It was a hard-earned win for Ray Beltran (27-6, 17 KO), who for years was Manny Pacquiao's main sparring partner, against one of the toughest brawlers in the division in Ji-Hoon Kim (24-8, 18 KO) of South Korea, who was on a three-fight win streak and ranked no. 3 by the IBF.

It was sweet victory for Ray Beltran, the perrenial "sparring partner" who for years was fighting for respect as a fighter. The Mexican fighter did not get his due against the likes of Sharif Bogere and Luis Ramos Jr. wherein he found himself at the short end of the decisions. He did not get the respect that he deserved even in a win against highly-touted Hank Lundy, who by the way, is still ahead of him in many sanctioning bodies' rankings.

But in this particular fight, Ray Beltran earned his due and got the respect that he deserved -- rankings, ratings and sanctioning bodies be damned.

The epic first round...

Ji-Hoon Kim immediately jumped into Ray Beltran right from the start with hard albeit wild shots, which Ray Beltran tried to evade by backtracking as he tried to time and counter his opponent. But with 1:44 in the round, Beltran found himself on the canvas after receiving a short left to the jaw from Kim.

Ray Beltran beat the count as Ji-Hoon Kim swarmed him, throwing wildly with power shots, but Beltran never panicked and and landed a counter left, smacking Kim in the jaw. Kim staggered backwards and smiled as he acknowledged the hard shot that he just received. It was a see-saw battle from then on as the two fighters tried to outland and outbomb each other.

With less than 10 seconds left in the round, Ray Beltran snuck in a left hook to the jaw that downed Ji-Hoon Kim. Visibly shaken while the referee administered the mandatory eight count, Kim was saved by the bell as he wobbly walked back to his corner.

For whom the bell tolls...

The second round found Ray Beltran and Ji-Hoon Kim continuing where they left off: Going toe-to-toe in the pocket; Beltran digging to the body and hooking upstairs. Kim, on the other hand, continued to head hunt. In the last 10 seconds, Beltran hurt Kim with several hard shots, but Kim was again saved by the bell.

Ray Beltran showed his patience while under fire (even absorbing a low blow with 2:12 minutes left in the round) and was very methodical and accurate with his punches when attacking the wild punching Ji-Hoon Kim. Still, Beltran has a cut above his left eye to show after the round, caused by one of the bombs that his opponent landed on him.

In the third round, a minor snafu in his corner did not deter Ray Beltran from engaging Ji-Hoon Kim in trench warfare. With the referee stopping the fight and ensuring that he had his mouth guard on him, Ray Beltran and Ji-Hoon Kim continued putting the hurt on each other. While Ji-Hoon Kim continued to head hunt, Ray Beltran began digging on his opponent's rib cage. And the Korean would wince every time Ray Beltran's right would land on his side with a thud.

And with 15 seconds remaining, Ji-Hoon Kim found himself on the receiving end of Ray Beltran's assault. Again, the bell played its spoiler role and Kim survived the onslaught.

From rounds 4-10, the trend of the fight was throwing bombs all the way. Every punch thrown was packed with mean intentions. Every punch landed with thunderous explosions.

The hardnosed battle showed both fighters trading hard shots in trying to outgun and outpower each other inside the pocket. But while Ji-Hoon Kim continued to come forward and head-hunt, Ray Beltran always varied his approach to the fight -- a right hook to the body, a left hook to the face -- tactics that proved a menace to Ji-Hoon Kim's cause in the end.

In a tit-for-tat war, Ray Beltran's very methodical approach negated Ji-Hoon Kim's wild hard punches. In the brutal exchanges, Jin-Hoon Kim's vaunted artillery failed him. Ray Beltran's investment in the body early took its toll on Ji-Hoon Kim's power and aggresiveness later on. In the end, Ray Beltran's accuracy in the trenches proved to be the difference, while Ji-Hoon Kim's weapons faltered when it mattered the most.


Note: This article was previously posted on Detroit Fight Sports Examiner