Stephanie Trapp / SHOWTIME®
Erislandy Lara outpointed an overmatched Ishe Smith to retain his WBA light middleweight title on Friday at Illusions Theater in San Antonio, Texas.
Lara (20-2-2, 12 KOs) used superb footwork and his laser straight-left to earn himself a lop-sided unanimous decision against the game but ineffective Ishe Smith (26-7, 12 KOs) in what turned out to be a tactical, but entertaining, main event.
Ishe Smith, 36 years old, gave a good account of himself, landing powerful left hooks to the body on the rare occasions when he had Lara trapped against the ropes. But those times were few and he was unable to cut off the ring effectively enough as the slick Cuban had his way with him.
Erislandy Lara boxed brilliantly throughout the fight, controlling the pace and distance, and out-landing the Las Vegas-native 124 to 68 punches.
“I’m an experienced fighter and I know how to read my opponent. I read Ishe in the first round and I set up my game plan,” Lara said. “His body work didn’t affect me. I trained hard with Jack [Edward Jackson] and Ronnie [Shields]. He tried to break my concentration with his cheap tactics and dances, but I know how to control myself. I can control my impulses and I don’t let anything get in the way.”
The judges scored the fight 119-109, 119-109 and 117-111.
Ishe Smith’s zigzag career peaked in February 2013 when he decisioned Cornelius Bundrage to win the IBF world title in the highly competitive light middleweight division. He subsequently lost the belt in his first defense to Mexican Carlos Molina in September 2013. In May Smith came back from the loss with a devastating second-round knockout victory over career-opponent Ryan Davis.
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Lara was 3-1 going into Friday’s fight with wins over Alfredo Angulo and Austin Trout. A Lara/Smith encounter had been originally scheduled for earlier this year, but Lara pulled out of the bout when the opportunity to fight Mexican superstar Saul Alvarez presented itself. Lara, 31 years old, lost that fight after finding himself on the short end of a controversial decision.
By beating Ishe Smith, Lara keeps himself in the contender mix and a possible, though unlikely, shot at pound-for-pound great Floyd Mayweather Jr.
For Smith, this loss leaves him with some tough decisions to make. As he gets on in years and his better days are behind him, the time might soon come for the mighty Sugar Shay to hang up the gloves.
“I did what I had to do, we had a great camp and I went out there and let it hang,” Smith said. “You win some you lose some. That’s life.”
Also on the card, Christopher Pearson defeated Steve Martinez by unanimous decision in a hard-fought 10-rounder, and Badou Jack mugged an overweight Francisco Sierra on his way to a sixth-round TKO win.
Stephanie Trapp / SHOWTIME®
Live updates (scores are not official):
Round 1: Fighters meet in the center of the ring, Lara fights southpaw. Lara immediately moving and testing the distance with hisjab. Left hands from Lara, Smith chasing, Lara circling clockwise. Smith working the body. Halfway mark of the round, Lara against the ropes, spins out. Lara pumping jab. Lara standing ground, both fighters tumble to the floor. No knockout. Big right hand from Lara. 10-9 Lara
Round 2: Lara jabbing, keeping his distance. Lara, left to the body. Lara landing single shots and darting away. Ishe taunting Lara. Minute left in round, Smith unable to counter the slick Cuban. Left hand from Lara stops Smith in his tracks. Lara landing combinations, Smith targeting the body. 20-18 Lara
Round 3: Smith pressuring, trying to cut off the ring. One minute in, left to the body from Lara. Big left from Lara and he gets out of the way. Rights to the head and body from Smith at one minute remaining. Good foot speed from Lara, Smith is unable to catch him. 30-27 Lara
Round 4: Lara landing left hands to the head and body. Smith trying to rough him up. Lara against the ropes, but Smith misses with all. Spins out. Minute left, more rough play from Smith, working the body when in the clinch. But Lara is not giving him the opportunity to get inside. Lara is mostly in control. 40-36 Lara
Round 5: Lara landing and moving. When Smith cuts the ring off, Lara spins out in the opposite direction and gets away. Good gains from Smith to the body. Halfway point, hard left from Lara trips up Smith. Minute remaining, left uppercut from Smith. Smith taunting, but Lara landing lefts at will. Closest round. 49-46 Lara
Round 6: Lara continues to box, Smith pressing. Three punch combo from Smith at the halfway point. Hard 1-2 from Lara. Lara taking some time off, but still controlling the distance. 58-56 Lara.
Round 7: Lara pumping the jab. Smith landing to the body. Three hard left hands from Lara to the head. One minute in, Lara landing at will. Minute left, Lara against the ropes, but not for long. No answers for Lara’s left. Big right from Smith. 68-65 Lara
Round 8: Smith opens the round with punches along the ropes. Lara boxing beautifully, gets away. Left from Lara and he clinches. Halfway into the round, Lara landing left hands. Minute left, Lara fights out of the ropes and presses Smith, then back to boxing. Left to the body from Lara. 78-74
Round 9: Lara lands straight away, head-body-head. Right hand to the body from Smith at the halfway point. Lara landing to the body. Minute left, Smith roughs the Cuban up and clinches. But Lara in control throughout. 88-83
Round 10: Fighter meet in the center, then back to the chase. Smith lands to the body. Right hook from Lara, one minute in. Halfway in, Lara against the ropes, spins out to the outside. Lara pushes Smith down, no knockdown. Smith is catching Lara against the ropes more, but it’s not enough. 98-92
Round 11: Into the championship rounds. Smith pressing, putting in the effort, but Lara is in complete control. Right hand from Lara. Halfway point, left hook to the body from Smith. Minute left, Lara showboating. Another left hook to the body from Smith. Smith getting frustrated nearing the end of the round. 108-101
Round 12: Final round. Lara using a pesky jab to annoy Smith, lands right hook. Minute in, combination lands for Smith. Left hook to the body from Ishe. Minute left in the fight, left from Lara. Smith unable to catch Lara. 118-110 Lara
