Johnson edges Gonzalez!

February 25, 2008

41-year-old former two-time world champion Reggie Johnson (44-7-1, 25 KOs) won a split decision over former world champ Julio Gonzalez (41-5, 25 KOs) to claim the IBA light heavyweight title on Saturday night at the Civic Center in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

As expected, Gonzalez pushed forward throughout backing Johnson to the ropes often behind a busy jab followed by many punches from both sides, but found Johnson hard to hit cleanly with the big punch. Johnson, who had had only one fight in the previous six years, counterpunched effectively off the ropes but rarely in combination.

As the fight progressed, Gonzalez' pressure appeared to be paying dividends as Johnson tired. Going into the final round, the scorecards showed johnson up on two cards at 105-104 and 107-102 respectively. Gonzalez led on the third card at 103-106. Round twelve was Gonzalez' best round of the fight and he won the votes of two judges but somehow lost the final round in the eyes of judge Kenny Saintes.

Had judge Saintes scored the final round for Gonzalez, the bout would have been a three-way split draw on the cards. When the split decision was announced in favor of Johnson, the crowd booed heavily. Johnson had won in the eyes of two judges but it was Gonzalez who won the fans.

Final scores read judge Kenny Saintes: 115-113 and judge Mickey Lofton: 116-112, both for Johnson and judge Ray Clary with 112-116 for Julio Gonzalez. Fightnews had Gonzalez in front by three points.

As always, Julio was a class act in defeat. After the fight, Reggie took the microphone, thanked all involved, and stated that the fight was too close and that Julio Gonzalez deserved a rematch. Julio agreed as the two shook hands in midring.

The fight headlined a show billed as "Fight Night for Climate Change," emphasizing the issue of global warming.