By Jim Dower: #1 WBO middleweight contender Brian Vera (23-6, 13 KO’s) stayed in the running for a payday fight against former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. tonight by beating 33-year-old Donatas Bondorovas (17-4-1, 6 KO’s) by a highly questionable 7th round stoppage due to two small cuts that Bondorovas had suffered at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino, Verona, New York, USA.
Referee Charlie Fitch asked Bondorovas if he could see well enough to continue after the 7th round, and it appears there was a miscommunication with Fitch not understanding that Bondorovas said “I can see.” Fitch thought he heard Bondorovas say “I can’t see very well.”
The stoppage very well may have saved the fight for the better known Vera because he appeared to be losing the fight at the time of the stoppage, and Bondorovas was the one that controlling the action with his right hands. Fitch seemed to be getting in the way earlier in the fight when he took a long time warning Bondorovas about a low blow he threw in the 4th.
Instead of just telling him to keep his shots up above the wait, Fitch stopped the action and kept the two fighters apart for what seemed like eternity.
I had Bondorovas ahead at the time of the stoppage 4 rounds to 3. Vera is very lucky the referee halted the fight because the chances were high that Vera would have lost the last three rounds or least two of them.
It’s hard to see Vera as having proven himself worthy of getting a fight against Chavez Jr. after this questionable win because he looked poor and was getting tagged all night long by right hands from the stronger Bondorovas. Gennady Golovkin would destroy Vera just as James Kirkland did.
Other boxing results on the card:
Umberto Savigne TKO 4 Jackson Junior
Ryan McKenzie UD 6 Steven Tyner
Taras Shelestyuk TKO 1 Kamal Muhammad
Evgeny Chuprakov UD 4 Micah Branch
Lavisas Williams pts 4 Calvin Pritchard
Antoine Douglas UD 4 John Worthy
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