Abner Mares was an undefeated upstart in 2012 and at the precipice of his pro career the last time Staples Center hosted a boxing match. A green Leo Santa Cruz, on the cusp of breaking out, was the co-featured attraction that November night. They then seemed on a collision course.
The two Los Angeles featherweights finally faced off in a fight three years in the making Saturday at Staples, and it was the undefeated champion Santa Cruz who solidified his main event status by winning a majority decision against his fellow Mexican-American.
Santa Cruz, a slight betting favorite, withstood Mares’ early maul and went on to use his size and cleaner, more effective shots to bruise and bloody his rival. The younger Santa Cruz stayed in the pocket and threw relentless combinations against a game Mares, who silenced any doubters who questioned his passion by showcasing a sense of urgency not seen since suffering a devastating first-round knockout to Jhonny Gonzalez two years ago.
The series of exchanges led to tough-to-score rounds that could have been decided with a coin flip; it certainly was a fight of the year candidate. Judges Jesse Reyes and Steve Morrow both scored the fight 117-111, while Max Deluca had it a draw at 114-114. The Guardian scored it 115-113 for Santa Cruz.
“I was surprised Abner came out so strong. He came right at me but we figured him out and we got the win,” Santa Cruz said after the fight. “I stayed outside with the jab. We were able to take control.”
The much anticipated non-title fight headlined the ESPN-televised Premier Boxing Champions card. The pro-Santa Cruz crowd filled the 25th fight at Staples with a healthy smattering of boos directed at Mares throughout the night.
With 30 rounds of sparring between the two in previous years, both foes were certainly familiar with each other’s intricacies. Mares attacked Santa Cruz from the get-go and was the busier fighter, but he was cut in round three on the scalp as momentum was slowly started to swing toward his opponent’s direction.
Santa Cruz shook off Mares’ shots with smiles and used his size to outbox his adversary with flurries that were landing flush – and at a higher rate. CompuBox tallied a mind-blowing 2,000 punches between both combatants with Santa Cruz landing at a 35% rate (373 of 1,057) compared to 23% for Mares (227 of 980).
“It was a close fight, but I thought I won the fight. I thought I pulled it off,” Mares said. “My plan was to box him, but I started out really fast. I felt good but my corner told me to box more, so I did that. It was a good fight.”
As the relentless pace continued, however, neither appeared to be too tired or punched out until the closing rounds. Mares was briefly hurt in round eight, desperately clinching before the sound of the bell. Sensing that the fight was hanging in the balance, both fighters came off their stools flinging in the 12th stanza – another round for Santa Cruz.
“My dad told me that we could beat him by boxing. We want to be aggressive but tonight we had to box him too and that’s how we got it done,” said Santa Cruz.
The thrilling, tight fight definitely warrants a rematch with the hopes of it turning into a series of all-Mexican fights not seen since Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez duked it out years ago.
“If he wants the rematch I’ll give him the rematch,” said Santa Cruz. “I want to fight the best. I want the big fights.”
“I’m more than willing to have a rematch. It was a close fight,” Mares said. “I knew he had never faced a fighter like me and he proved today he’s a great fighter.”
The brawl was the kind of fight that would likely make a Mexican legend like Julio Cesar Chavez proud. Chavez, who was in the house Saturday, fought in a plethora of crowd-pleasing performances at Olympic Auditorium just a few blocks away from Staples in his hey day.
It certainly pleased the 13,109 fans in attendance – who filled the arena with non-stop pandemonium. 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.
After Saturday’s scintillating show, they should be singing to see it again.
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