Photo credit – Carlos Baeza – By Peter Wells: There was always a risk in last nights fight, sometimes it’s best to stop when everything’s going right. That goes for Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez IV. The trilogy was great, it was exciting and dramatic; why not leave it at that, but the 4th battle was not the same. It only went 3 rounds and was all Marquez, it lacked everything the last 3 had. Many people including myself have the trilogy on DVD, but there’s no chance I’m going to buy the 4th. Watching these fights after they’ve happened isn’t as bad but to watch it live it’s just not the same.

Vazquez was cut terribly over both eyes and the swelling was what you’d expect to see after being hit constantly by Mike Tyson for 15 rounds. Instead he was in with a powerful Super Bantamweight for less than 3 rounds. Vazquez looked in the fight in the first; he was using his jab well and trying hard to land his big left hook. I still gave Marquez the 1st but would probably change that if I watched it again. Replay’s showed that the nasty cut over Vazquez’s left eye was caused by a headclash, but the referee called it a punch that caused the cut. He came out with swelling over both eyes and a stream of blood on the left side of his face.

In the second it was clearly going in Marquez’s favour, he was boxing well and landing the bigger shots, while Vazquez struggled to get his left hook off, although had some minor success. In the third, Vazquez was cut again over the right eye this time and though it wasn’t anywhere near as bad as the left it was bleeding badly. Vazquez looked okay until a right to the temple hurt him and after a delayed reaction he fell down. He was up, but Marquez moved in for the kill and after another one-two rocked him the referee jumped in to end the fight.

It looked after the fight like both fighters were hoping for a 5th fight, but those eyes will take a long time to heal and hopefully he won’t be licensed to fight in any state. There is no need to see Vazquez take the same beating again, because that is what’ll happen. Marquez should look somewhere else now while Vazquez need’s to consider retirement before he is seriously hurt.