Santa Cruz vs. Mares: Did Leo prove why skills beat strength conditioning?

 STAPLES CENTERBy Gerardo Granados: Do the readers think that you need to bench press +330 pounds and to look like a body builder to knock your opponent out; or if you need to use all those expensive gym equipment to be fit and strong? Is it that a lanky body type of boxer like welter Tommy Hearns or featherweight Salvador Sanchez had serious punching power or do they needed to look ripped like Tim Bradley to hit hard?

Abner Mares looked jacked up at the weigh-in last Friday, and as usual some casual fans like a friend of mine thought that Leo Santa Cruz was in trouble for their fight last Saturday night at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.

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Mares willing to fight Lomachenko, Walters or Santa Cruz next

Image: Mares willing to fight Lomachenko, Walters or Santa Cruz nextBy Dan Ambrose: Despite taking a frightful beating last Saturday night to unbeaten former two division world champion Leo Santa Cruz (31-0-1, 17 KOs) in losing a 12 round majority decision, 29-year-old Abner Mares (29-2-1, 15 KOs) says he’s willing to get back inside the ring to face the likes of Santa Cruz again, or WBO featherweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko or former WBA Super World featherweight champion Nicholas Walters. It depends on who his adviser Al Haymon wants Mares to fight.

Mares lost the fight to Santa Cruz by the scores of 114-114, 117-111 and 117-111. Mares was fortunate that the scores of the fight was even that close because you can argue that Mares should have lost by a wider set of scores.

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Santa Cruz vs. Mares replay this Tuesday, September 1st on ESPN at 9pm ET

PBC BOXING AUG 29 2015 STAPLES CENTERBy Tim Fletcher: For boxing fans who didn’t get a chance to see the war between Leo Santa Cruz (31-0-1, 18 KOs) and Abner Mares (29-2-1, 15 KOs) last Saturday night, the Mares-Santa Cruz fight will be on replay this Tuesday, September 1st on ESPN at 9:00 p.m. ET.

The fight was shown on Premier Boxing Champions on ESPN last Saturday night in what many fans believe could be the Fight of the Year. It’s certainly the best fight that I’ve seen this year up to this point. For a fight that was shown on free television, this was a great deal.

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Santa Cruz Wins the Battle of LA

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by Michael Montero – A crowd of 13,109 packed the Staples Center on a hot summer night in Los Angeles to see the highly anticipated featherweight clash between Leo Santa Cruz and Abner Mares. The fight headlined a very entertaining PBC on ESPN card and would more than live up to its “Battle of LA” billing. Mares entered the ring first to a mixture of boos and cheers. Santa Cruz made his ring walk next and it was clear that the crowd was on his side, probably 3 to 1. The tension was thick as referee Jack Reiss gave the fighters their final instructions and they touched gloves. It was an electric atmosphere and the noise ringside was deafening as the opening bell sounded.

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Santa Cruz defeats Mares: A Win is a Win

Image: Santa Cruz defeats Mares: A Win is a WinBy The Sandman: Last Saturday night at the Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California, Leo Santa Cruz (31-0-1, 17 KO’s) came out victorious in winning a 12 round majority decision in his fight against Abner Mares (29-2-1, 15 KO’s). Many fans and boxing analysts felt Santa Cruz’s recent level of competition had not prepared Santa Cruz for a match up with Mares. However, Santa Cruz demonstrated intelligence, patience, and skills that were not needed in his previous fights.

Boxing Fans had not seen the 27-year-old Santa Cruz face adversity until the first round of Saturday’s fight with Mares. Before the opening bell, Mares seemed settled on the idea that he would take the fight to Santa Cruz and also had the demeanor of a confident fighter.

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Abner Mares: I thought I won the fight, I’m willing to do a rematch

8)By Dan Ambrose: After having come up empty in his war with Leo Santa Cruz (31-0-1, 17 KOs) last Saturday night, 29-year-old Aber Mares (29-2-1, 15 KOs) is complaining that he should have been given the win in their fight at the Staples Center in Carson, California.

Mares thought he had done enough to get the nod from the three judges who had been assigned to the fight, but unfortunately for him they saw the 27-year-old Santa Cruz as the winner by a 12 round majority decision by the scores of 114-114, 117-111, and 117-111. Mares had to settle for being the whiner instead of the winner. I’m just saying.

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Photos: Leo Santa Cruz Wins Battle Of Los Angeles

In a battle of Southern California featherweights, Leo “El Terremoto” Santa Cruz, (31-0-1, 17 KOs) defeated Abner Mares, (29-2-1, 15 KOs) by majority decision in a fight reminiscent of Mexican wars between boxing legends Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales on Saturday night. Scores tallied 117-111 twice and 114-114 in front of a raucous crowd of 13,109 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles for the Premier Boxing Champions on ESPN main event.

With savage uppercuts and brutal power shots from the opening bell, the combatants threw more than 2,000 punches combined with Santa Cruz connecting 35 percent of his total 1,050 punches and Mares connecting 23 percent of his 980 total punches.

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Santa Cruz defeats Mares

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By Jim Dower: Leo Santa Cruz (31-0-1, 17 KOs) remained unbeaten with an impressive 12 round majority decision over former three division world champion Abner Mares (29-2-1, 15 KOs) to capture the WBA Super World and WBC Diamond featherweight titles on Saturday night in a blood-filled fight on Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on ESPN at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. This was one was perhaps the best that we’ve seen from PBC. Santa Cruz-Mares is definitely a fight of the year candidate.

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Weights: Mares 125.2, Santa Cruz 124.8

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By Dan Ambrose: Leo Santa Cruz (30-0-1, 17 KOs) and former three division world champion Abner Mares (29-1-1, 15 KOs) both made weight on Friday for their fight this Saturday night on Premier Boxing Champions on ESPN from the Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California.

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Mares expects Santa Cruz bout to be ‘Fight of the Year’

Image: Mares expects Santa Cruz bout to be 'Fight of the Year'By Dan Ambrose: WBC super bantamweight champion Leo Santa Cruz (30-0-1, 17 KOs) and former three division world champion Abner Mares (29-1-1, 15 KOs) will be fighting it out for the WBA Super World featherweight title this Saturday night on Premier Boxing Champions on ESPN from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.

This is one of the World Boxing Association’s two world titles at 126 that they’ll be fighting for. The WBA “regular” featherweight title is currently held by Jesus Andres Cuellar.

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