By Jim Dower: Heavyweight contender Chris Arreola did what he had to do on Friday night to defeat Manuel Quezada by an unimpressive 12 round unanimous decision at the Citizens Business Bank Arena, in Ontario, California. The final judges’s scores were 117-108, 118-107, 118-107. Arreola looked slow, lethargic and rubber armed in beating a fighter that was there to be hit all night long.

Arreola dropped Quezada twice in the 9th round, but gassed out trying to score a knockout. In the 10th, it was Quezada who was pushing the fight and working over a tired Arreola. In the 11th and 12th rounds, Arreola came back, outworking Quezada with sloppy looking shots that lacked power. Arreola continued to maul Quezada at will. It was ugly boxing.

Arreola dominated the fight for the first six rounds, but then started to tire and take shots from the weak punching Quezada. Out of frustration, Arreola began to maul Quezada in close, wrestling and landing short, ugly punches with little power. Quezada looked too small to fend off the bear like mauling attacks, but there was little damage that occurred during most of Arreola’s mauling attacks other than some good wrestling action.

Arreola looks like he’s regressing as a fighter instead of getting better, and 29, Arreola may have seen his best days, as he seems unable to take off enough weight to be the fighter he once was when fighting in the low 230s.

All in all, I thought Arreola didn’t make a claim for himself to be put back on HBO. I think he has to improve a lot and I’m not sure he can do it. I think he’s probably seen the last of 230 and I suspect he’ll be fighting at 250 for the remainder of his career and possibly higher as he ages and continues to eat well.