Light heavyweight beltholder Beibut Shumenov retained his title by outworking and outboxing Viacheslav Uzelkov to a 12-round unanimous decision in the main event of an ESPN2-televised card in Lemoore, Calif., on Friday.Shumenov (10-1, 6 knockouts), who won by scores of 118-109 (twice) and 117-109, was dropped by a left hook in the first round but the 26-year-old boxer-brawler got up and dominated the rest of the bout with his superior punch output and ring generalship. Shumenov scored a knockdown with a temple shot at the end of round three and proceeded to control Uzelkov (22-1, 14 KOs) with aggressive stalking, a busy jab, and hard body-head combinations in the middle rounds before utilizing smart lateral movement late in the bout.Uzelkov did not let his hands go enough. The Ukrainian was content to wait for counter-punch opportunities behind a high guard, which was obviously the wrong strategy to take with Shumenov, a confident and well-conditioned physical specimen whose skill and technique is improving with new trainer Kevin Barry.Shumenov's victory likely earned the 2008 Olympian from Kazakhstan a measure of respect from hardcore fans that he didn't have coming into his <i>Friday Night Fights</i> showcase. Shumenov won a major title in his 10th pro bout (a record for the 175-pound division) with a controversial split decision over Gabriel Campillo in January. Most observers believed Campillo, who had outpointed Shumenov in their previous fight, deserved to keep the title. The result of Shumenov's title-winning effort was so suspect that most considered Uzelkov, THE RING's NO. 6-rated light heavyweight, to be the favorite in Friday's contest. Prior to facing Shumenov, Uzelkov has stopped his last 10 opponents, including a sixth-round KO of Campillo in 2007.Shumenov will likely break into THE RING's light heavyweight rankings and should be considered a player in the 175-pound division.In the co-featured bout of the <i>Friday Night Fights</i> broadcast, junior featherweight prospect Rico Ramos, of Los Angeles, easily outboxed Mexico City native Cuauhtemoc Vargas (15-4-1, 10 KOs) to a unanimous eight-round decision. Ramos (17-0, 9 KOs) won by scores of 80-72 (twice) and 79-73.
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