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SportsTranscript
00:00 - All right, fellas, y'all had your instructions.
00:01 Dress in room.
00:02 Protect the mandate, total momentum.
00:04 Protect yourself at all times.
00:05 Toe Galoos, touch 'em up!
00:07 - Omar Rosario and Giancarlo Rivera
00:10 proudly representing Puerto Rico
00:13 on Puerto Rican Day Parade.
00:16 This will be an eight-round junior welterweight fight,
00:20 and there'll be some extra spice in it
00:23 because both of these fighters have in their minds
00:27 what it means to fight on June 10th weekend.
00:31 Miguel Cotto did it.
00:33 Tito Trinidad did it.
00:34 And now, Rosario Rivera and Xander Zayas later on
00:38 will do it.
00:39 Rosario is a very skilled fighter
00:43 who wants to be the next big Puerto Rican champion.
00:47 (crowd cheering)
00:50 - Nice right hand there from Rosario
01:00 with the black and red trunks.
01:02 And Josh Taylor already in the building, fainting.
01:09 And he actually walked from his hotel room
01:11 all the way in to the MSG Theater in New York City.
01:17 I've never seen a guy more happy to come to New York
01:21 than Josh Taylor.
01:22 And his mentor, his idol, Ken Buchanan, recently passed.
01:27 That was a deep thing that ran really hard with him.
01:31 Buchanan fought here six times.
01:36 - Watch the hands in there, folks.
01:37 - Lost famously to Roberto Duran.
01:39 Turned around and beat the great Carlos Ortiz.
01:42 So when people talk about the old days,
01:44 that's what they mean.
01:45 - And there was a gift waiting for Josh Taylor
01:47 in his locker room, some new kicks.
01:50 His wife was immediately pointing those out
01:52 and they probably end up on her feet.
01:54 - He saw coming to the garden,
01:57 and I mean this almost without hyperbole,
02:00 but as a real pilgrimage.
02:03 He took it serious, man.
02:05 - Well, absolutely.
02:06 Ken Buchanan did it.
02:07 And all the great fighters in history
02:11 have fought in this building at Madison Square Garden.
02:14 Tonight we're in the theater,
02:16 but it means something to anybody
02:18 who's a boxing historian, who has studied the game.
02:21 If you can say, "I fought at Madison Square Garden.
02:24 "I won at Madison Square Garden."
02:27 That means that you are on the grandest of stages.
02:29 - Break, break, break, break, break.
02:31 Come on, y'all got to turn on.
02:32 - And that's why Rivera and Rosario
02:34 mean business right now.
02:35 - First time, both are scheduled for eight rounders,
02:38 stepping up from the six round fights.
02:40 - Omar Rosario, he is a young man
02:44 who is trained by Joe Santiago,
02:47 who was a long time part of Miguel Cotto's team.
02:50 He's the godson, or was the godson of Miguel Cotto Sr.,
02:55 who passed away, but he grew up around the Cotto family
02:59 and learned a lot, did Rosario.
03:01 (crowd chattering)
03:04 the bell.
03:09 (crowd chattering)
03:12 Stop at the bell.
03:22 (bell ringing)
03:32 - Round one in the books here at the theater at MSG.
03:37 It was once called the Felt Forum.
03:40 - I remember when it was called the Felt Forum.
03:42 - Well, Buchanan, who fought here six times
03:45 in his 69 fight career, he stopped Edwin Malave
03:51 September 1st, 1973.
03:54 Five of his fights were in the big room.
03:57 This was Buchanan's only fight in the Felt Forum,
03:59 which is where we are tonight.
04:02 He also had a 1972 lightweight loss title to Roberto Duran.
04:06 Never got the rematch, and check this out.
04:08 He headlined a card in December 1970 against Donato Paduano
04:12 with a comeback in Muhammad Ali on the undercard.
04:15 Ali and his team arrived at the venue to find out
04:18 that he'd not been assigned a dressing room.
04:20 Someone from Ali's team asked Buchanan
04:22 if they could go share his large headlining dressing room,
04:25 which he agreed to, and once Ali walked into the room,
04:28 Buchanan drew an imaginary line in the middle and said,
04:31 "Don't cross this line or you're in trouble."
04:34 - By the way, he's nicer about the dressing room
04:38 than his guy, Taylor, who switched dressing rooms
04:42 with Tiafimo, as was his right in the contract,
04:45 but you have to figure like the last minute switch
04:47 is really to get as much as he can into Tiafimo's head.
04:51 - The mind games continue, and you have to be
04:54 a Hall of Famer to do that to Muhammad Ali,
04:56 as Ken Buchanan was.
04:58 - What a line, please.
04:59 - Imagine that.
05:00 - Hey champ, go over to that side.
05:03 - There's a show about that, isn't there?
05:05 They put tape in the middle of the room.
05:07 Was it "Friends" or some show I recall?
05:09 Sometimes my wife wishes that she could put a line
05:16 in the middle of the room.
05:17 - Round two of a scheduled eight rounder.
05:21 Omar Rosario, when we asked him,
05:23 "Who do you want to be like?"
05:25 We figured maybe Tito Trinidad,
05:27 maybe Miguel Cotto, his protege.
05:30 Says, "No, I want to be the first Omar Rosario.
05:32 Create my own history."
05:34 And that's what he's trying to do here against Rivera,
05:36 who's a southpaw who's coming out wild in this second round.
05:39 - Watch your heads, man.
05:40 Watch your heads.
05:41 - That was the most impressive answer
05:45 in the entire fight, it means.
05:47 - I agree.
05:48 For a young man at age 25,
05:50 but it was only his 11th pro fight tonight,
05:53 to say, "I want to be myself."
05:54 - Especially a guy who's been raised
06:02 by his idol, raised in proximity
06:04 to that kind of a star as Cotto.
06:09 - Got to cut that arm, just cut the arm, please.
06:11 - You know, we've been doing this together for a while,
06:23 and it feels like periodically,
06:25 we ask that question,
06:27 "Okay, so who's the next great Puerto Rican fighter?"
06:31 And Xander Zayas can step in for a while.
06:35 We thought, "Is it Berlanga?"
06:38 But we still haven't answered the question.
06:40 It's been quite a while.
06:41 - Yeah, and Berlanga will be in this same room
06:43 in a couple of weeks against Jason Quigley.
06:46 Still on the hunt for a fight
06:49 against Saul Canelo Alvarez.
06:51 We'll see how that scenario plays out at 168,
06:55 where B-Vol has been told that if he doesn't take
06:59 the same terms as the first fight,
07:01 it just won't happen.
07:02 David Benavidez--
07:05 - I don't think that fight happened.
07:06 - That's not happening?
07:07 - I don't think B-Vol gets a Canelo rematch.
07:12 I'll break no punch.
07:13 I'd like to see him for our purposes,
07:15 what it better be of,
07:17 but I just don't think that's happening.
07:18 - Well, Canelo's team doesn't want to have that fight.
07:21 Canelo wants it, but--
07:22 - You're such a Canelo hater.
07:25 - Oh, come on now.
07:26 It depends on what Twitter page you tune into.
07:29 Some say I hate him, some say I love him.
07:31 Either way.
07:33 - Omar, show him, Mico.
07:34 (bell rings)
07:36 - Let's listen in to Omar Rosario
07:42 and his trainer, Jose Santiago.
07:43 Take a deep breath.
07:46 Put your head down.
07:49 You doing good?
07:53 Hey, I need you to start with that.
07:56 Be careful with that lead hand of his and his hook.
07:59 Inhale.
08:01 Hey, your straight right is landing.
08:07 That's your shot.
08:10 All you gotta be careful with him is the lead jab.
08:17 He tries to move you to that side.
08:20 Once you find the angle, go at him.
08:23 Make him work.
08:26 Change it up.
08:27 - These guys are never gonna forget this night.
08:35 It's already packed.
08:37 (bell rings)
08:38 - Absolutely.
08:39 - Already packed, and it changes
08:40 the entire dynamic of the fight.
08:43 - And I was told that there is a new record revenue gate
08:48 for this fight card for inside the theater
08:52 at Madison Square Garden.
08:54 So it's a big night for these young Puerto Rican fighters
08:57 fighting on the Puerto Rico Day Parade,
08:59 as well as for Teofimo Lopez and Josh Taylor,
09:03 who both felt they should have been in the big room.
09:06 - They weren't in the big room 'cause
09:08 we thought that it could be a hockey or a basketball game.
09:13 - Correct.
09:14 - But I've lived in New York long enough,
09:17 so there wasn't gonna be a basketball game, sorry.
09:19 (crowd cheering)
09:22 - Playoff game.
09:25 - Nice counter right from Rosario on the inside.
09:48 - Really impressed with Rosario.
09:52 He's catching a lot of those shots, and he's coming back,
09:56 and he's just a little bit stronger to me right now.
10:00 - He talked about working on generating power
10:02 and showing his dominance more clearly,
10:05 and he's such a well-spoken young man.
10:07 Most of the fighter meeting was conducted in English,
10:10 and he told us, "I just earned my bachelor's degree
10:13 "in marketing while boxing, and that balancing act
10:16 "really taught me to appreciate the sport."
10:18 - If he wants to know how to market Omar Rosario
10:22 for a convincing win tonight with this crowd.
10:24 No, I'm serious.
10:25 - Yeah, they'll always remember.
10:27 Nice body work there from Rosario.
10:31 - Break, I said break.
10:33 You gotta listen.
10:34 Stop pushing.
10:37 Don't not look for that, all right?
10:39 Let's go, box.
10:40 (crowd shouting)
10:42 Keep it clean, I'm right here, fellas.
10:51 Break.
10:54 Let's go.
10:57 - Rivera told me he wanted to deliver
11:07 a special performance tonight, and so far,
11:10 the precision of Rosario's kept him on his back foot.
11:14 - He's not fighting a bad fight,
11:16 I just think that Rosario's been a little bit better.
11:19 - You know who had a bad fight last time out?
11:27 It was Josh Taylor, and it was a long time ago
11:29 against Jack Catterall, and he sat down this week
11:32 with our very own Mark Creagle,
11:34 and talked about what happened,
11:37 and what he learned since that fight.
11:38 - High energy from Glasgow.
11:44 Josh Taylor may go out tonight.
11:46 - What happened with Catterall?
11:49 - I made the almost grave mistake of getting complacent,
11:52 and looking past what was beyond Jack Catterall,
11:55 I started focusing on what was next,
11:57 rather than what was right in front of me,
11:58 so therefore, I never really prepared
12:00 properly, mentally and physically.
12:04 - You took a beating in the media,
12:06 and with the fans after that fight.
12:08 - Yeah.
12:09 - Did it get to you?
12:10 - Not really, what did get to me
12:11 was the abuse side of things online.
12:13 My wife was getting it, my little sister was getting it.
12:15 Threats of violence getting put on them.
12:18 - Does a win here wash that away?
12:22 - To a certain extent, it will, yeah,
12:23 but there's always gonna be keyboard warriors
12:25 that are gonna just say their shit anyway.
12:29 I've got a chip on my shoulder from last fight,
12:33 I've got a point to prove, I've got the hunger,
12:35 I've got the desire, I've got a big goal
12:36 and a big target in front of me.
12:38 - Respectfully disagree with the champ, Josh Taylor.
12:45 I think that the reception of that fight
12:47 did get in his head, that's why he stuck around
12:50 as long as he possibly could to wait on Catterall.
12:53 He had an injury, had a foot injury last time,
12:55 this is a bigger fight, he knows it.
12:57 He can get Catterall sometime down the road.
13:00 - And the fact that he wanted that rematch so badly
13:02 cost him the undisputed titles.
13:05 He had to vacate all except for the belt
13:07 that's on display and got to take tonight.
13:10 - He gave up two belts just to get Jack Catterall back.
13:14 And that right there is how personally
13:17 Taylor takes every fight.
13:19 And I can tell you, this fight,
13:21 he might be taking most personally.
13:24 - And he said, "Look, it's not personal,
13:26 "but there's gonna be spite in my punches."
13:28 So that is a contradiction within itself.
13:31 - His now former trainer, Ben Davidson,
13:35 he is an incredibly spiteful fighter.
13:38 He didn't mean that as anything negative,
13:40 he meant it as a compliment.
13:42 And he really is, if he sees a weakness, he can take it.
13:45 You can see the heat that he generated.
13:47 Oh, we got a mouthpiece gone.
13:48 - And he's proven that spitefulness
13:53 in both the Jose Ramirez fight,
13:55 which was the fight for the undisputed belt,
13:57 and probably his greatest win,
13:59 which was the victory against Regis Progray.
14:01 They're taking their time over in the Rosario corner.
14:08 Oh, let me drop it again.
14:10 Oh, butterfingers.
14:12 - Let me wash it off now, 'cause I dropped it again.
14:16 - You gotta bite down, that's what gonna cost you,
14:17 all right, hold on.
14:18 Time in!
14:19 - This is how it happened, Kregel.
14:21 Oh, he just spit it out.
14:25 - Oh, he spit it out.
14:26 - Like, come on, man.
14:27 (laughing)
14:29 - So, the warning from referee Sean Clark,
14:32 if it happens again.
14:33 - And that was a good warning.
14:35 It was a non-contact mouthpiece spit.
14:38 - Double dribble.
14:42 - But it does speak to the kind of pressure
14:47 that Rosario is putting on him.
14:49 - Let's go.
14:50 - Nice right hand from Rosario
14:54 as Rivera strays down low.
14:57 Nice uppercut.
14:58 His right hand is loose and Rosario uses it.
15:00 I don't know if it's the moment or what,
15:11 but Rivera seems to be very wide with his punches tonight.
15:15 - Why, low blow.
15:17 - And maybe that's just him.
15:19 - No, but he seemed to have been
15:22 a little bit more under control
15:23 in the other times that we saw him,
15:25 even in the loss against Quentin Randle.
15:27 - Nice right hand by Rosario.
15:54 - Stop at the bell!
15:55 (bell ringing)
16:03 - Time! - Time, here we go.
16:04 - This fight is halfway through the books
16:09 and tonight, Xander Zayas puts his undefeated record
16:14 on the line at 15 and 0.
16:16 This young man dreams of one day headlining
16:19 on Puerto Rican Day Parade weekend.
16:21 He gets his opportunity to be the co-main event
16:25 against Ronald Cruz.
16:26 He's a fifth ranked junior middleweight in the world
16:29 and he is a fighter who really believes
16:32 he can be the next great Puerto Rican star.
16:36 Right now, he's in the locker room getting his hands wrapped
16:39 and he's already a double stamp prospect
16:42 on Timothy Bradley's list.
16:44 The Hall of Famer sees great things for this young man
16:48 who's being wrapped by Mike Bazzill
16:50 and Mark, the injuries kept him away from this moment
16:54 which he wanted to be a headliner
16:56 but nonetheless, he's well on his way.
16:58 - He's waited for this a long time, you know,
17:03 to be in a place of real visibility
17:06 in the garden on Puerto Rican Day weekend.
17:10 The best thing he can do tonight is really,
17:13 talk about marketing,
17:14 is to deliver a memorable performance.
17:16 If you think about what Tia Fimo did here
17:18 against Mason Menard, I'm not suggesting
17:20 he's gotta come away with a one punch knockout
17:23 but you put something like that on tape,
17:25 it becomes your calling card for a year or two.
17:29 - Giancarlo Rivera now coming out a little bit
17:32 more aggressive here in round number five.
17:34 Rivera told me, I'm gonna control the pace
17:46 and range and catch and shoot
17:48 but so far he's having trouble imposing his will
17:51 on Omar Rosario and this young man,
17:54 he got great work in with Cuban Olympian, Andy Cruz
17:57 who just defected and is working in Philadelphia
18:00 with Derek "Bozzy" Ennis.
18:03 So you talk about quality work and Boots' dad is,
18:07 you know, speaking great things
18:08 about the future of Andy Cruz.
18:11 (crowd yelling)
18:14 - Turn arms loose.
18:17 Hands are free, fellas.
18:20 - Andy Cruz, that's the guy Keshaw wants, right?
18:22 - Yeah, the guy who beat him four times in the amateurs,
18:25 including the Olympics.
18:26 - Like to see that though.
18:29 - Absolutely.
18:30 Nice right hand from Rosario, very settled
18:33 and now sitting on his left hook.
18:35 - You know, I thought that mouthpiece
18:40 that Rivera spat out last round
18:41 was a little bit of a white flag
18:43 and he came out game and kind of precise
18:47 but as the round goes on,
18:51 you're seeing Rosario assert himself more and more.
18:54 - Way to keep it clean, fellas, way to keep it clean.
19:02 Turn arms loose, turn arms loose.
19:06 Hands are free.
19:08 (crowd yelling)
19:10 Hands are free, fellas, come on now.
19:17 Anything to the front.
19:20 Break, break, break.
19:21 - Jose Yenis exhorting Giancarlo Rivera
19:31 to fight back against Omar Rosario
19:35 who said, "I'm gonna be the future
19:36 "of the 140 pound division."
19:39 - He's fighting back,
19:42 there's just that little gap in talent.
19:44 - Rosario trying to walk down,
19:56 Rivera has him pinned up against the ropes here
20:00 at the end of round number five.
20:04 The strength of Rosario evident here
20:07 as the bell sounds.
20:10 Tio Fimo Lopez will be in tonight's main event
20:15 challenging for the 140 pound title
20:19 and this will be his third consecutive fight
20:22 at this weight since the George Camboses loss.
20:25 He's had success against Southpaws
20:27 but last time he was at MSG,
20:30 he questioned whether he still had it
20:34 and it was a poignant moment.
20:35 - Bro, do I still have it?
20:40 - You do, man.
20:41 - Do I still got it?
20:42 - Yeah.
20:46 - I've never seen anything like that from a fighter.
20:53 Then again, there's a lot of things
20:55 I've never seen before with Tio Fimo Lopez.
20:58 I pressed it on him this week
21:01 and he said, "Yeah, I said what I said
21:04 "and I meant what I said
21:06 "but it's only because I have such a high standard,
21:08 "only because I wanna be perfect."
21:11 So make of that what you will.
21:12 But he did not say,
21:14 he told to his previous line
21:16 that it was some sort of mind game.
21:18 - He did say even Hall of Famers
21:20 question themselves at certain points
21:22 and he also mentioned this,
21:24 Tio Fimo said, "My ability has always protected me
21:27 "even in those tough fights."
21:30 - Break, break.
21:31 - Round six, go ahead.
21:34 - A night like tonight will test not just his ability
21:39 but his head too.
21:41 Josh Taylor will test you in every way.
21:45 - And Josh Taylor is so keen on that, Mark,
21:47 that he says he neither has the discipline
21:50 to keep the game plan or to not be wild tonight.
21:55 - Maybe, maybe not.
21:56 I wanna see it first.
21:58 But what Josh Taylor does do
22:01 is test the highest level fighters.
22:05 Jose Ramirez, Regis Brograde,
22:08 those are big time guys and he came out ahead of both.
22:11 The gap wasn't great
22:12 but each of them went through something
22:15 that they had not gone through before
22:17 because of Josh Taylor.
22:18 - Turn it on, turn it on.
22:19 - Josh Taylor's experience at the elite level
22:25 with physically tough, strong, and skilled fighters
22:30 is something that could be a major difference tonight.
22:33 Nice counter right from Omar Rosario.
22:53 - Rosario's 25, looks like he's 12.
22:55 I asked him in the fighter meeting,
22:58 have you ever shaved?
23:00 No.
23:01 He doesn't punch like a kid.
23:05 - No.
23:05 He's 26 years old, so.
23:09 - Boots Ennis, father Bozian is asking Rivera
23:22 to use angles here against Rosario.
23:24 Nice left there from Giancarlo Rivera, finds a home.
23:32 He's using his length here,
23:38 one and a half inch reach advantage
23:39 in favor of Giancarlo Rivera.
23:41 And Rosario trying to close that gap.
23:44 - Turn it on.
23:46 - Those Everlast gloves sure are shiny tonight.
23:52 - They might be young fighters,
23:57 but they know an awful lot about letting that left arm
23:59 catch that one.
24:00 He ain't going anywhere with that.
24:02 - Stop at the bell!
24:03 Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop.
24:08 Come on, set break, set back.
24:11 - Three-fourths of the way done with this fight,
24:14 and it all leads us to our main event,
24:17 the Tartan Tornado,
24:18 the WBO and lineal junior welterweight world champion,
24:21 former undisputed.
24:23 He is still undefeated at 19 and 0 with 13 knockouts.
24:27 This guy has gone through every one at 140 pounds.
24:31 Unlike other divisions, there's no easy route.
24:34 He beat Ivan Baranchik, he beat Regis Progres,
24:38 he beat Apinul Kansang, he beat Jose Ramirez.
24:41 Controversial win against Jack Catterall.
24:43 What they all had in common, they were all undefeated.
24:46 A combined 111 and 0.
24:50 He's five and 0 with one knockout in five world title fights.
24:54 No easy path, Regal.
24:56 - Did you see him up there, the shot of him
24:58 in the locker room?
25:00 They had him, they were so concerned,
25:02 the guard and top rank,
25:04 they were so concerned that the fighters,
25:07 if they were downstairs here,
25:08 at what used to be called the Feld Forum,
25:10 that the locker rooms are much closer proximity,
25:12 that they were concerned that they would go at each other,
25:15 so they moved them upstairs.
25:17 - Yeah, now they are--
25:18 - That's where the Knicks and the Rangers aren't.
25:20 - Ooh, Mark, did you have to go there?
25:22 - I'm a hater, man.
25:23 - My goodness.
25:25 Rivera seemed to have found something there in round six.
25:31 Now he's pressuring Omar Rosario.
25:34 - My roommate, no pun.
25:35 These guys are both great at locking down
25:42 the other's jab hand.
25:43 - Can you get close?
25:44 - Yes, there you go.
25:45 Hey, give me that.
25:46 - You're pinning the jab hand.
25:48 They learned that in the Philly gyms
25:50 because the giant Carlos Rivera
25:52 is a Philly-based Puerto Rican southpaw,
25:55 but Rosario landed a nice overhand right
25:58 above the jab hand.
25:59 - There've been a couple rounds like this,
26:06 Rivera comes out strong,
26:08 and by the end of it, Rosario has him.
26:11 - My break, my break, my break, my break.
26:15 - Turn on me, turn on me.
26:17 - There it is.
26:20 - Warning about holding that lead hand.
26:24 - Come on, come on, break.
26:26 Break clean.
26:27 - Rosario with a nice counter right,
26:32 pull counter, and then nice body work
26:34 from Giancarlo Rivera.
26:35 - See, that's where I missed Timmy.
26:43 - My break, my break, my break.
26:43 - That was a nice shot by Omar Rosario,
26:47 and he says, "Yes, it's called a pull counter,"
26:49 and then he'd go into an explanation.
26:51 That's why he's in the Hall of Fame.
26:53 - I think you're saying that you miss Timmy.
26:57 - Doesn't mean I don't like having you here, brother,
26:59 but I'm just saying that's what Timmy would say
27:02 in that situation.
27:03 - Hands are free, fellas.
27:04 - Get what you pay for, birthday boy.
27:06 - Ooh, nice fight by Rosario on the inside.
27:12 - These guys will remember this fight
27:14 for the rest of their days.
27:15 - My break, everything in the front, fellas, let's go.
27:18 - The winner will say, "I did that,"
27:20 and the loser will say, "Why did I not do a little more?"
27:24 - Step back, break.
27:26 - Those iconic lights on the ceiling of this building
27:30 so easy to identify when there's a big fight
27:35 that happened in this spot.
27:36 - Break, everything in the front, let's go.
27:40 Come on, let's go, fellas, let's go.
27:42 - I was talking to Ramirez before.
27:44 He's very much a West Coast fighter,
27:46 but he won his title here.
27:48 I said, "What do you remember about the guards?"
27:50 And exactly unlike Taylor,
27:52 I don't remember anything, I was so locked in that night.
27:54 - Wow. - I remember Amiri Mom.
27:56 And that was as good as good an Amiri Mom,
27:59 speaking of 140 pounds, as we've seen ever.
28:03 It didn't really do anything after that.
28:05 And that's what a guy like Ramirez does to you.
28:08 - Well, these guys are going at it toe to toe.
28:10 Omar Rosario and Giancarlos Rivera
28:13 closing out the penultimate round of their fight.
28:16 - Watch your head, watch your head.
28:18 - Puerto Rican fans out in force here tonight,
28:22 imposing a new record for revenue
28:25 for a fight inside the theater at MSG.
28:29 Listening to Jose Santiago.
28:32 Drink this water.
28:38 Take a deep breath and just relax for a second.
28:40 Put some Vaseline on his face.
28:43 Hey, you gotta just go straight through the middle.
28:55 Just relax a little bit.
28:57 I want you to be dominant in this round.
28:59 We're doing okay, but we need to do something special here.
29:07 Clean hands and go out early.
29:09 You gotta go straight through the front
29:13 and then go with angles laterally.
29:16 But don't get over-anxious.
29:18 - I think Santiago's right.
29:23 He knows people will take this home with them.
29:27 People will talk about it.
29:29 If it's not gonna be a knockout,
29:31 give him something to remember.
29:33 - And the words of Omar Rosario in our meeting was,
29:36 "I've got to show my dominance more clearly."
29:40 I like to show my dominance of the English language
29:43 a little bit better.
29:44 I read what he said, but it happens.
29:47 - Maybe if Timmy were here.
29:48 - Yeah, maybe.
29:49 - I will say, Sean Clarke,
29:54 I think has done an excellent job tonight.
29:55 He's been busy without messing around the action.
30:05 - Nice right hand from Omar Rosario
30:08 catching Giancarlo Rivera, trying to close the gap.
30:11 Now he's starting in and out.
30:18 Here's Rivera.
30:19 Rosario tried to catch him with the right.
30:23 - Talking before about Jose Ramirez,
30:34 how he tests you.
30:35 That's how Josh Taylor tests his opponents.
30:39 And you're talking about one after the other,
30:41 undefeated guys, champions.
30:42 - No easy path to the belt.
30:46 And at 140, everyone fought everyone.
30:49 While Baranchik was fighting Zepeda,
30:51 it was Ramirez who had already beat Zepeda.
30:54 And then we had Progray who lost to Josh Taylor.
30:59 And then Taylor had to take the belts from Jose Ramirez
31:02 to become undisputed.
31:03 It really was a round robin tournament
31:05 amongst the top five in the division.
31:07 And Rosario thinks he can be the next big
31:15 Puerto Rican fighter at 140,
31:16 where Miguel Cotto started his career.
31:18 - You know, Rivera's a good game tough fighter.
31:23 I don't know what the judges are thinking,
31:25 but Rosario's just a little bit better.
31:28 - Rivera's got one loss,
31:31 and that was against Quinton Randall.
31:33 He's got a no decision against Steven Thurstein.
31:36 - Really impressed with Rosario.
31:38 And it's a night like this
31:41 that will make him considerably better.
31:44 - He's got a balance between his boxing,
31:47 his pressure, his body punching,
31:50 but he's only got three knockouts and 10 victories.
31:52 And that may be the one factor that he needs to work on
31:56 to be a Puerto Rican star.
32:00 - If you're a knockout guy, you're not.
32:03 I think it would be a bigger mistake
32:07 to try to be something you're not.
32:10 Look at Devin Haynes.
32:12 - Yeah, he's undisputed.
32:14 - He ain't gonna go hungry.
32:16 Oh, they're finishing in fine form.
32:18 - All right, they gave each other some love
32:27 in the middle of the ring.
32:28 And you know who deserves the love and-
32:31 - You do, birthday boy!
32:32 - No, no, no.
32:33 You, Mark Kregel, the Nat Fleischer Award winner
32:37 from the Boxing Writers Association of America.
32:41 This is such an important award.
32:44 Lance Pugmire won it for 2022.
32:46 You won it for 2021.
32:48 It's for lifetime achievement.
32:49 What does this award mean to you, Mark?
32:51 - It means to me that I follow with two great friends,
32:56 guys who really taught me about boxing
32:58 like Wally Matthews of Newsday,
33:01 Mike Katz of the New York Times and the Daily News.
33:05 I guess I drove both of them a little crazy,
33:07 but it is an honor, really is.
33:10 - Now you drive us a little crazy, but-
33:11 - You deserve it.
33:12 - The way you have with words,
33:14 to see it recognized by this particular award
33:18 in particular by your peers, well-deserved, Mark,
33:21 because you are a wonderful writer
33:24 and you've been able to bring that skill to TV.
33:27 - That's not easy to do, my friend.
33:29 - I think you're talking about the written word
33:31 as opposed to my live commentary.
33:34 Thank you, brother.
33:34 It's always a pleasure.
33:35 - The next time I'm emceeing an event,
33:37 right before you get your award,
33:38 please don't go off to the bathroom like you did.
33:40 Guys, you're not gonna believe what happened.
33:43 I'm up on stage as an emcee
33:46 and I'm about to give away the first award of the night.
33:48 And it happens to be for our very own Mark Regal.
33:50 - Why don't you tell me?
33:51 - I look and I was like, maybe he's at the bar.
33:55 I look over the bar, no Mark Regal.
33:57 - The press would never let that happen.
33:58 I'm gonna give you the seat to someone more qualified,
34:02 and Andre Ward.
34:03 What's up, kid?
34:04 - Andre Ward, the Hall of Famer, now back in here.
34:08 And Omar Rosario hoping to be named the winner
34:11 of his 11th professional fight.
34:13 But Giancarlo Rivera also going for his ninth win tonight.
34:18 And the judges still have the cards in their hands
34:23 as Mark Chanuk awaits the official decision.
34:26 It's a party in here because two Puerto Ricans
34:30 fought on the eve of Puerto Rican Day Parade,
34:33 but only one can come away the winner.
34:36 Let's send it up to Mark Chanuk for the decision.
34:39 - Ladies and gentlemen, after eight rounds
34:44 here inside the theater at Madison Square Garden,
34:47 we go to the judges' scorecards for the official decision.
34:50 Mark Constantino, Robert Perez, and Dontrella.
34:55 All score the bout 77-75.
35:00 For your winner by unanimous decision,
35:03 Omar "The New Era" Rosario!
35:10 - Omar Rosario comes away with the eighth round
35:13 unanimous decision victory.
35:15 Identical scorecards by two points
35:18 on each of the judges' scorecards
35:21 and an impressive performance for the young boy.