Orlando Salido shocks JuanMa with 8th round stoppage

ORLANDO SALIDO SHOCKS JUANMA LOPEZ WITH

EIGHTH ROUND TKO TO CLAIM WBO FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE

IN ALL ACTION THRILLER

Luis Cruz Outpoints Martin Honorio via Unanimous Decision to Remain Undefeated

Catch the Replay on Tuesday, April 19 at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME EXTREME

BAYAMON, P.R. (April 17, 2011) – After thirty fights of stunning crowds with his ability to neglect defense and always come back to score the victory, Juan Manuel Lopez’ streak ended. Orlando Salido captured the WBO Featherweight Championship via eighth-round technical knockout (referee stoppage) after connecting with countless right hands including one that landed “JuanMa” on the canvas in the fifth round. In the co-featured bout, Luis Cruz claimed a unanimous decision over Martin Honorio with the scores of 100-90, 98-92 and 96-94 from Ruben Rodriguez Coliseo in Bayamon, Puerto Rico on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING.

At first it seemed like nothing new for the 27-year-old, charismatic Puerto Rican.

After Lopez (30-1, 27 KOs) won the first several rounds, Salido (35-11-2, 23 KOs), of Ciudad Obregon, Mexico, roared back by coming forward, bringing pressure and landing his right hand to the hard head of Lopez. In a flurry of punches between both fighters in the fifth, Salido landed a solid left hook followed by a hellacious right that sent JuanMa to the ground. Visibly staggered, Lopez called upon his warrior determination to return to his feet before the ten count and endure the dwindling seconds of the round.

Admitting to the severity of the knockdown, Lopez simply stated after the fight, “The punch in the fifth round hurt.”

The lingering effects of Salido’s monstrous right hand pushed JuanMa into survival mode throughout the sixth as Salido looked to end the night, but Lopez was able to miraculously hang on. By the seventh, the 10,115 loyal fans in attendance were on their feet and screaming at the top of their lungs as they witnessed their champion come back to life with a another signature gutsy performance.

But then the storyline changed.

Instead of Lopez springing from his corner in the eighth to knockout his opponent, it was Salido who charged into the round with a renewed sense of urgency to end the fight. Although Lopez was able to sporadically retaliate, Salido was landing the much cleaner, harder shots and Lopez was once again wobbling around the ring. The wobbling and lack of punching efficiency proved to be too much for referee Roberto Ramirez Jr. as he stopped the slugfest at 1:39 of round eight.

The stoppage surprised – and angered – many in attendance, as the boos were following by flying beer and water bottles from the pro-Lopez crowd. Lopez echoed the crowd’s displeasure with the ref’s ruling. “[Salido] was hitting me but [Ramirez Jr.] shouldn’t have stopped the fight,” said Lopez. “I was still conscious.”

For safety purposes, Rodriguez was walked out of the arena by a team of police escorts.

Proudly hoisting up his belt after the fight, the new champion said, “I came very prepared to fight the No. 1 featherweight in the world. I think the fight was going pretty evenly through the first five rounds but I knew I had to pressure [Lopez] because we were in his hometown.”

After considering the bout’s thrilling nature and competitive spirit, promoter Bob Arum informed the media at the post-fight press conference that he fully planned to schedule a rematch between Lopez and Salido in the fall.

In the night’s opening attraction, the Puerto Rican rising prospect Cruz (18-0, 14 KOs), of Philadelphia by way of Las Piedras, Puerto Rico, made his case for contender status with a solid unanimous decision over Honorio (29-6-1, 15 KOs), of Mexico City. Although the fight was closer than the hometown scoring (110-90, 98-92, 96-94) from hometown judges (Raul Nieves, Nelson Vazquez, Carlos Colon) would indicate, Cruz silenced any critics pointing to a lack of quality opposition on his resume. Honorio, a late replacement for Roman "Rocky" Martinez who withdrew after suffering a lower back injury in training, has shared the ring with many former and current champions and owns a collection of upsets throughout his career.

The first round saw the two fighters feel each other out before each man found his rhythm, with Cruz scoring on big single shots and Honorio punching in volume to make his mark. In an action-packed sixth round, the two exchanged several power shots with Cruz landing big left hooks and uppercuts and Honorio scoring with the right hand.

As the 10-round junior lightweight clash settled back down, a sense of confidence and poise came over Cruz who proved to himself that he could handle prizefighting at the next level. Although the scores were more lopsided than some may have believed, Cruz earned a hard-fought unanimous decision in his coming-out party as a legitimate contender.

The doubleheader was promoted by Top Rank, Inc. The telecast will replay on Tuesday, April 19 at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME EXTREME and will be available On Demand from April 19 through May 2.

Gus Johnson called the action from ringside with Al Bernstein providing color commentary and Jim Gray serving as ringside reporter. David Dinkins Jr. is the Executive Producer of SHOWTIME Sports® with Chuck McKean producing and Bob Dunphy directing.

*Photo Credit: Tom Casino/SHOWTIME

"JuanMa" Lopez Faces Orlando Salido in Headliner of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING Doubleheader on April 16

WBO FEATHERWEIGHT KINGPIN JUAN MANUEL LOPEZ

TO DEFEND AGAINST EX-CHAMP ORLANDO SALIDO

SATURDAY, APRIL 16, LIVE ON SHOWTIME^®

 

Top Puerto Rican Contenders Luis Cruz and Roman Martinez Clash in Co-Feature

Live at 10:30 p.m. ET From Ruben Rodriguez Coliseo in Bayamon , Puerto Rico

 

NEW YORK (April 1, 2011) – Unbeaten Juan Manuel “Juanma’’ Lopez has caught the attention of most everybody in boxing with his exciting, explosive style and unwavering charisma.  Following in the footsteps of his countrymen like Puerto Rican superstars Felix Trinidad, Wilfred Benitez and Miguel Cotto, Lopez has been virtually unstoppable as he’s compiled a record of 30-0 with 27 knockouts.

 

On Saturday, April 16, Lopez, of San Juan, returns to SHOWTIME® to defend his World Boxing Organization (WBO) featherweight title against former International Boxing Federation (IBF) 126-pound belt-holder Orlando “Siri’’ Salido (34-11-2, 22 KOs), of Ciudad Obregon, Mexico, in the main event live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING (10:30 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast).

 

In an excellent co-feature from  Ruben Rodriguez Coliseo in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, undefeated Luis Cruz (17-0, 14 KOs), of Philadelphia by way of Las Piedras, Puerto Rico, will take on fellow world-ranked Puerto Rican and former WBO champion Roman “Rocky’’ Martinez (24-1-1, 15 KOs), of Vega Baja, in a 12-round junior lightweight bout. Top Rank, Inc. will promote the doubleheader. 

 

The 27-year-old Lopez, a two-division world champion, is coming off the most significant win of his career, an eighth-round TKO over Mexico’s boxing legend and future Hall of Famer, Rafael Marquez, in a tense give-and-take slugfest last Nov. 6 on SHOWTIME.  The victory came in the crowd-pleasing, powerful southpaw’s second title defense and third fight at 126 pounds. 

 

Lopez came away victorious after Marquez, who was vying for a world title in his third weight division,  could not answer the bell after the eighth round due to a shoulder injury. Despite a point deduction in the fourth, Lopez was ahead by the scores of 78-73, 77-73 and 77-74.

A five-year pro, Lopez made five successful defenses of the WBO 122-pound title before abandoning the division to challenge WBO 126-pound champion Steven Luevano on Jan. 28, 2010.

 

If triumphant on April 16, Lopez could be looking at several possible compelling matchups, but he isn’t underestimating the challenger.

 

"I expect a very tough fight against a strong fighter like Salido, who is a true warrior,’’ Lopez said.  “But at the end of the day, I will be victorious and will give my Puerto Rican fans a fight to remember."

 

An aggressive power-puncher who has knocked out 90 percent of his opponents, Lopez may not remain at 126 pounds for much longer. He recently stated he intends to move up to 130 pounds after two more fights – the defense against Salido and a possible rematch with Marquez. 

 

“I really feel strong at 126,” Lopez said. “I’m eating well. I’m doing my diet the proper way. I definitely feel better than I did at 122 and I’m much stronger. But I may be moving up after the end of the year.” 

 

Salido dropped defending champion Cristobal Cruz twice en route to winning a resounding decision and the IBF featherweight crown on May 15, 2010, in Ciudad Obregon . A convincing points victory – 117-109 twice and 116-110 – came in a rematch of a fight for the vacant IBF belt won by Cruz via split decision by the scores of 116-112 twice and 113-115 on Oct. 23, 2008, in Spokane , Wash.  

 

In his last start, Salido lost a decision to his WBA counterpart, Yuriorkis Gamboa, in a wild knockdown affair on Sept. 11, 2010, in Las Vegas . Salido dropped Gamboa in the eighth, but went down twice himself in the 12^th. At the finish, Gamboa had survived by the scores of 114-109, 115-109 and 116-109.

 

Salido, who turned pro at the tender age of 16 in March 1996, also went the distance while losing a decision to pound-for-pound mainstay and then-World Boxing Association (WBA)/IBF featherweight kingpin,, Juan Manuel Marquez – Rafael’s brother – in September 2004. 

 

"It’s never easy to fight in a champion’s backyard, but I will give it my all to win and bring the belt back to Mexico ,” said Salido, who’ll be making his sixth appearance in a world title fight. “I know one thing, Lopez is a great champion who likes to fight and with my style it should make for a great and exciting fight."

 

The 25-year-old, hard-hitting Cruz is ranked No. 11 by the IBF at 130 pounds and has won six in a row by knockout, including a TKO 2 over Wilfredo Acuna in his most recent start last Dec. 4, and 11 of his last 12 inside the distance. Cruz has gone the route only three times since turning professional in March 2007. The furthest he’s gone is 10 rounds.

 

But Cruz will be getting his sternest challenge to date against Martinez, the WBO’s No. 3-ranked contender whose only setback came in his last start on a close nod to local favorite Ricky Burns in an explosive, hotly contested match on Sept. 4, 2010, in Glasgow, Scotland.

 

The 28-year-old Martinez scored a knockdown in the first and won the early rounds, but Burns rallied to earn a victory after 36 minutes of gripping action by the scores of 115-113 and 115-112 twice.

 

Martinez captured the WBO belt in March 2009 with a fourth-round TKO over Nicky Cook in Manchester , England , and made two successful defenses in Puerto Rico . He scored a ninth-round TKO over Feider Viloria in September 2009 and stopped Gonzalo Munguia in the fourth in May 2010.

 

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