- 2 days ago
Undefeated Junior Middleweight contender Fernando Vargas faces Darren Macuniski on HBO Boxing After Dark
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00:00To be continued...
01:00Tonight on Boxing After Dark, you'll see rising star Fernando Vargas looking for a 14th knockout in 14 fights as he takes on Darren Mashinsky.
01:10And then comebacking Arturo Gatti, trying to regain his identity as the most exciting boxer in the sport, faces tough Philadelphian Ivan Robinson.
01:20Outside this seaside resort enters its final muggy month of summer.
01:24Inside, the fighters on this card look for hope and redemption.
01:28Hope that Vargas can continue on his path to superstardom.
01:32Hope for redemption as Arturo Gatti tries to rebound from a loss.
01:36So lean in, paint your face, powder your cleavage, and get ready for another terrific night of boxing on HBO's Boxing After Dark.
01:46From the sublime to the ridiculous, we go from that to my face.
01:50Hello again everybody, I'm Jim Lampley.
01:51We welcome you to this special edition of HBO's Boxing After Dark, which features two of the most exciting fighters in the sport.
01:58One of them, Arturo Gatti, exciting because he's always on the verge of disaster as he seeks redemptive victory.
02:04The other, Fernando Vargas, because he produces the kind of excitement that only goes with a superstar in the making.
02:11Someone with a chance to make a real imprint on the history of the sport if he continues the way he started out.
02:17Working with us as always, someone who's already made an imprint on the history of the sport.
02:21World light heavyweight champion Roy Jones.
02:23And Roy, the high wire act for Arturo Gatti.
02:25He's every fighter's favorite fighter to watch.
02:28In fact, tonight's opponent Ivan Robinson said, I'd rather watch him than any other guy.
02:32I have to forget about that when I go in to fight him.
02:34All this excitement in Gatti's career, good or bad for him?
02:37Well, it's both.
02:38Number one is good because he's always walking on that thin line.
02:41Everybody that he fights is going to come out there.
02:43They're going to hit him with big punches.
02:44They may even get ahead of him in a fight, but you can almost bet your bottom dollar that he's going to come back
02:49and he's going to make it a superb, terrific comeback.
02:51So it's bad for his boxing career to always get behind, but it's beautiful for boxing.
02:55And we'll see him in the second fight of the evening against Ivan Robinson.
02:58Meanwhile, we turn to HBO Boxing Analyst Larry Merchant to talk about the first fight,
03:02a showcase for Fernando Vargas against Darren Mashinsky.
03:05Vargas has fought 13 fights, 30 rounds total in his career.
03:09He's less than 21 years old, just turned 20 this past December.
03:12And if he wins tonight, it probably vaults him toward a mandatory title shot.
03:16Is he that good?
03:17He's better than good, Jim, but I don't know that anybody is that good.
03:22Makes you wonder, does an adolescent skateboarder go right to a Lamborghini?
03:27Does Leonardo DiCaprio want to play Hamlet?
03:30But Vargas is one of three very precocious graduates of the 96 Olympic class,
03:39including David Reed in the same weight class, who has far exceeded expectations as a pro,
03:46and Floyd Merriweather Jr., who is already slated for a shot at a title this fall.
03:52And yet, in boxing, we ask, what is the rush?
03:56Is an asteroid hurtling to Earth, ready to turn us all into cinders?
04:01Whatever, Jim.
04:03If you bought stock in Vargas, it would seem almost like getting in on the ground floor of Microsoft.
04:10Yeah, that's right.
04:11He can become that good.
04:13He's an IPO at this point.
04:14So, incidentally, David Reed visited Vargas in the locker room before the fight to wish him luck.
04:18Both fighters are already in the ring, so let's take a closer look now at the rising Olympian star, Fernando Vargas.
04:25Well, Vargas wasn't hurt much after the Olympics because he lost one of those controversial decisions,
04:32but he has never gone past the sixth round in his meteoric professional career.
04:38And across the ring from Vargas tonight, for the first time in his career,
04:42he'll be fighting an opponent who is taller.
04:45Mashinsky has some noteworthy wins over Buddy McGirt and Meldrick Taylor,
04:49and this could be a step up in class for Vargas.
04:52Well, he was the opponent for the ex-champions.
04:56He revels in the idea of being an opponent.
05:00They thought they would start to resurrect their careers with him.
05:03Instead, he buried them.
05:04But his biggest wins in a rather rough life that his father says is already a success story,
05:10just getting here, were over drugs and hepatitis.
05:14And he's managed to get past both of those obstacles, brings his mother with him to the fights,
05:19and she says, wow, what a wacky character my son is.
05:23I just enjoy being around him.
05:25Let's take a look at the tale of the tape now for Darren Mashinsky and Fernando Vargas.
05:30And we told you, Mashinsky, the first opponent Vargas has faced as a professional who has more height than he does.
05:36Two-inch reach advantage for Vargas.
05:38They weighed in at 153 and 155.
05:42Fernando has put on 13 pounds in the last 24 hours and Mashinsky 7 pounds.
05:46You know, a lot of people ask us, how is it possible to put on so much weight in such a short period of time?
05:53It's from dehydration and liquids that bring them up to a more natural weight.
05:58Rules of the bout, whether unofficial ringside scorer Harold Lederman.
06:01The ferocious Fernando Vargas, Darren Mashinsky fight is scheduled for 10 rounds, non-title.
06:06The rules are the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board.
06:09There is no standing gate count, no three-knockdown rule.
06:12Only the referee can stop the fight, and he cannot be saved by the bell in any round,
06:16including the 10th and final round.
06:17Jim.
06:18Let's go to ring announcer Mark Barrow for the official introductions.
06:22Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the ballroom of the Atlantic City Boardwalk Convention Center
06:29for an evening of all-star professional boxing on HBO, Boxing After Dark.
06:37Under the promotion of main events, in association with Valley's Park Place Casino Resort
06:43and Budweiser, the undisputed King of Beers, your matchmaker is Carl Moretti.
06:51Tonight's bouts are under the auspices of the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board.
06:56The commissioner in attendance is Larry Hazard.
07:01Ring officials assigned are your ringside physicians, Dr. Steve Oxler, Dr. Earl Shaw, Dr. Charles Wilson, and Dr. Eric Wormser.
07:11Your timekeeper this evening is Honest Art Spell, and counting for the knockdowns at the bell,
07:19in this case, the alternate referee, Randy Newman.
07:23Ladies and gentlemen, this is your first HBO matchup of the evening.
07:28It is scheduled for 10 rounds, junior middleweights.
07:31Your judges at ringside are from Newark, Kaysen Cheeks, from Ardsley, New York, Melvina Lathen,
07:42and from Cedar Grove, New Jersey, Steve Weisfeld.
07:47Your referee for this event, from Ventnor, New Jersey, Jim Condon.
07:53Heat ball, yeah!
07:55Introducing now the principals first in the red corner to my right,
07:59wearing the black trunks with the white trim.
08:02He weighs in at 155 pounds.
08:06His professional record reads 16 victories, 5 defeats, 6 wins coming by way of knockout.
08:13He hails from Pine Beach, New Jersey, introducing Darren Checkmate Mashinsky.
08:25Mashinsky.
08:27His opponent in the blue corner, wearing the white trunks with the gold trim, weighing 153 pounds.
08:36He is undefeated in 13 professional bouts, all 13 wins coming by way of knockout.
08:45He hails from Oxnard, California.
08:48He is currently ranked number 10 in the world by the Budweiser ratings of Fight Game Magazine.
08:54A member of the 1996 U.S. Olympic team, introducing ferocious Fernando Vargas.
09:08Vargas.
09:09Ten rounds, junior middleweights.
09:14Gentlemen, good evening.
09:15I expect a tough, clean fight, obey my commands, and most of all, protect yourself at all times.
09:20Good luck.
09:21May the best man win the touch gloves.
09:23Good luck, gentlemen.
09:25Mashinsky looks like he came out of the same movie as Gaddy.
09:29He wasn't as quick on the draw.
09:31He got knocked off after the first act, and Gaddy spent the rest of the movie trying to avenge that loss.
09:43Mashinsky is certainly a classic fighter story.
09:47His father's a plumber.
09:49Took him to the gym in frustration, trying to find something to do with his trouble-prone kid.
09:54And Darren has found in boxing a career beyond his difficulties with drugs, hepatitis, two stints in prison.
10:03His parents never gave up on him.
10:05Straight left hand by Vargas stops Mashinsky in his tracks.
10:08And you'll see the patient, economical way Fernando Vargas goes about his business.
10:13It's classic power puncher stuff, Roy.
10:15Yeah, Vargas is a big puncher, Jim.
10:18He takes his time because he doesn't want to set up those big shots.
10:20He doesn't want to go out there and show his opponent everything right away.
10:23He wants to camouflage some of it so he can hopefully catch him by surprise and may put him on the canvas.
10:28Vargas is 20 years old from Oxnard, California.
10:37Son of Mexican-American immigrants who worked in the agricultural fields of California to make ends meet.
10:44It's been no silver spoon upbringing for Fernando.
10:47He takes a little left hand in close from Mashinsky.
10:52Mashinsky will tell you straight out, I'm awkward, I'm a clumsy-looking fighter, but I get the job done through determination.
10:58Right hand over the top by Mashinsky.
11:10Yeah, he's even landed a couple of them.
11:13But an off-balance Mashinsky goes down from a straight Vargas right.
11:17And he talks about himself as an awkward, clumsy fighter.
11:20He got himself into an awkward, clumsy position.
11:22Yeah, he got overconfident there.
11:24He ran into a puncher.
11:25He has a nosebleed already.
11:26That right hand hurt him bad, though, Jim.
11:28He just caught with a little right here.
11:30I think he made it out.
11:31Vargas with a left to the body.
11:33Mashinsky still moving, but obviously wobbled by Vargas' early punches.
11:38And again, we mentioned the economy.
11:40Vargas wasn't throwing much.
11:42He just waited for an opportunity to catch Mashinsky off-balance.
11:45I thought it was more being off-balance.
11:48I don't think he's shaken up, although I think he understands that he's in with something he hasn't been in with before.
11:54He's already got a bloody nose, Mashinsky.
11:57He's okay now, but he was shaken up by that punch.
12:00When he got up, his eyes were very glassy.
12:03I don't think he's ever been hit with any power like that before.
12:06Plus, remember, he's given up a big weight disadvantage right here.
12:08Because of all the weight that Vargas put on in the last 24 hours.
12:16That's right, which is the advantage of guys dehydrating and putting on the extra weight you need.
12:24Straight right hand for Vargas, just missed.
12:27Digs a left to the body.
12:29It's been a good round for Fernando, who has bloodied Mashinsky's nose and knocked him down.
12:34Vargas looking for the 14th knockout victory of his early career.
12:39He took some hard shots from Anthony Stephens in his last win, but knocked Stephens out, just as he has all the previous opponents.
12:46Five!
12:52Five!
12:53Five!
12:54Five!
12:55Five!
12:56Five!
12:57Five!
12:58Five!
12:59Five!
13:00Five!
13:01Five!
13:02Five!
13:03Five!
13:05Four!
13:07Patriots hit or attack hit.
13:12Crimson WorldAmski the champion will all see these weapons in front shape from żyRables not having these weapons at any time but not having fear.
13:16They have a balance in no body.
13:18celebrated, Young Lightning Mc taunty, million champion heavy fighting for the world just being in for this game.
13:22Did he hurt you?
13:23No.
13:24Flash knockdown.
13:25I know it was.
13:26You were off-balance to begin with.
13:27turns against.
13:27You heard Mashinsky call it a flash knockdown, and I think that's a fair Immediately state ifometry did,
13:31THAT'S A FAIR STATEMENT. SECONDS OUT. TWO. WAIT FOR THE BELL, DARREN, BACK IN YOUR COURSE.
13:41MUSHINSKI SAYS HIS LIFE HASN'T BEEN BORING. IT WASN'T BORING IN THAT ROUND.
13:45WELL, IF IT WAS A FLASH KNOCKDOWN, IT WAS A BIGGER FLASH THAN MUSHINSKI MAY HAVE GIVEN IT CREDIT FOR.
13:51AS YOU SAW ON THE REPLAY, THE STRAIGHT RIGHT HAND LANDING FLUSH ON THE FACE OF DARREN MUSHINSKI.
13:58REFEREE KONDON TELLING MUSHINSKI NOT TO HOLD VARGAS BEHIND THE HEAD.
14:02VARGAS SCARCELY AWARE OF WHAT HIS OPPONENT'S DOING. HE'S JUST MEASURING HIS MAN AT THIS POINT.
14:17MUSHINSKI HAD THE MOST OPTIMISTIC POSSIBLE ON VARGAS'S 13 CONSECUTIVE KNOCKOUTS.
14:22HE SAID, WELL, OBVIOUSLY HE HASN'T BEEN FIGHTING ANYBODY. I THINK THAT'S A BIG ADVANTAGE TO ME.
14:27YOU KNOW, IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA IF VARGAS COULD GET IN SOME ROUNDS BEFORE HE TRIED TO FIGHT FOR A TITLE,
14:38ESPECIALLY IF HE HAS TO FIGHT SOMEBODY LIKE URI BOY CAMPUS.
14:42BUT HE DOESN'T LOOK LIKE HE'S TRYING TO MAKE ROUNDS HERE, ROY.
14:46NO, HE'S NOT TRYING TO MAKE ROUNDS. AND IF HE IS, HE'S NOT TRYING TO WIN THE ROUNDS HE'S MAKING.
14:50HE'S TRYING TO KNOCK A GUY OUT. AND HE WANTS TO DO THAT WITH ONE SHOT.
14:56BUT THAT'S BEEN HIS BREAD AND BUTTER THROUGHOUT HIS CAREER, SO I GUESS HE SHOULDN'T CHANGE.
15:00MARGAS HIMSELF SAID THAT HE'D LIKE TO GET IN SOME ROUNDS AND HE UNDERSTANDS THAT THERE WILL BE TOUGHER ASSIGNMENTS DOWN THE ROAD.
15:06BUT THE NATURAL INSTINCT OF A KNOCKOUT PUNTER, WHEN YOU HAVE A TARGET IN FRONT OF YOU AND YOU CAN REACH IT, YOU GO FOR IT.
15:12YOU GO FOR IT, JUST LIKE THAT. AND THAT'S WHY HE GOES FOR IT, RIGHT THERE.
15:16NOW THAT WAS A REAL KNOCKDOWN. HE REALLY FELT THAT ONE. HE FELT THAT FIRST ONE.
15:22LEADING OUT OF BOTH NOSTRILS NOW. BUT HE'S ALL RIGHT, HE SAYS.
15:29HE WON'T MAKE IT OUT OF THIS, I DON'T THINK.
15:32MINUTES STILL LEFT IN THE ROUND, PLENTY OF TIME FOR VARGAS TO FINISH.
15:36AND AS HE'S SHOWN EARLY IN HIS CAREER, HE CAN FINISH.
15:40GOOD LEFT HAND TO THE BODY BY FERNANDO VARGAS.
15:44THERE'S A LOT OF TIME OFF. I DON'T KNOW IF HE'LL BE ABLE TO SUSTAIN ALL THIS PUNISHMENT FOR THE REST OF THIS RUN.
15:52THIS IS A GREAT LOOKING YOUNG FIGHTER AGAINST A TOUGH CLUB FIGHTER.
15:58TOO MUCH QUICKNESS, TOO MUCH POWER FOR VARGAS.
16:02VARGAS TAKES A LITTLE RIGHT HAND FROM MACHINSKI OVER THE TOP, JUST WAITING AND WATCHING.
16:08THERE'S A LITTLE RIGHT, DARREN.
16:10VARGAS TURNS SOUTHPAUR, TURNS BACK CONVENTIONAL, LANDS A STRAIGHT RIGHT HAND AND BACKS MACHINSKI INTO THE CORNER.
16:18HAD HE LAND THAT STRAIGHT RIGHT HAND, THIS FIGHT WOULD HAVE BEEN OVER.
16:20That was a great move with the little southpaw turning back.
16:24Watch your head, Darren. Keep your hands up.
16:32Break it. Break. Let him go. Let him go.
16:42So, Mashinsky makes it out of round number two,
16:45but Vargas has scored two knockdowns in two rounds.
16:49And getting two bloody nostrils.
16:57Come here, baby.
17:01Please stop reaching.
17:02Oh, you're reaching. You're reaching. Now, listen to me. Come on.
17:06Knock it off.
17:09You're reaching.
17:11All I do about it.
17:13Get in close and shuffle in.
17:15You're hesitating with your fucking punches, too.
17:20Give me some water.
17:25You can do better than that.
17:29There's the reach-in, the counter.
17:32You heard Mashinsky say to his trainer who was saying you were reaching,
17:36well, what do I do about it?
17:38What does he do about it, Roy?
17:40Well, he gets out of there.
17:42There's not much he can do.
17:44He's following Vargas.
17:45Vargas is a big puncher.
17:46He's leaving himself open.
17:47He's coming right down the middle.
17:49He's going to run into your right hand every time.
17:51He has to come in from the left or the right side.
17:53He can't come straight down the middle of Vargas.
17:54You may remember Mashinsky's colorful trainer, Al Cerdo, from his tour of duty with Buddy McGirt, who was his long-time protege and star fighter.
18:04When McGirt lost to Darren Mashinsky, Cerdo saw in Mashinsky the kind of bulldog competitiveness that he thought he might like to work with.
18:14Oh, he's a game competitor.
18:17Yeah.
18:18Mashinsky just took off a nice right hand.
18:21He is nothing if he is not tough.
18:26Mashinsky trying to rough out, trying to get inside and brawl a little bit, hoping to make the fight a little bit ragged and unconventional,
18:34and hope that that will play well against Vargas' lack of experience.
18:38Vargas just being patient, as always.
18:41And that's the best thing Vargas can do.
18:42The reason he beat the journeymen was because they weren't as strong a punch as Vargas is, and they came out looking to use him as a step ladder.
18:51The journeymen learn to take guys lightly, and they go away, not in shape, not ready to go on full 10 rounds and have to fight all 10 rounds.
18:59So that's the way you can sneak in and beat a journeymen.
19:02Let him go. Let him go.
19:04These up-and-coming guys, they're not out here looking for somebody just to get by.
19:07They're looking to knock the guy out.
19:08By way of increasing Vargas' experience level, it's probably good for him if Mashinsky gets even more on orthodox and bullies him some more. Right, Roy?
19:16Yes, it is. He needs the experience before he goes in the ring with the world champion.
19:19Hard right hand by Vargas.
19:22Let him go. Let him go.
19:23Lands flush on Mashinsky once again.
19:25Darren holds on to avoid the knockdown.
19:30Let him go. Let him go.
19:33Vargas' blonde forelock flopping back and forth.
19:37He has a distinctive fade haircut.
19:39Carefully done for him by a friend who's a rapper musician in Oxnard.
19:46The friend made the three-and-a-half-hour drive from Oxnard to Big Bear, California to do Vargas' hair a couple weeks ago and then drove right back.
19:54Let him go. That's friendship. That's a dedicated friend.
19:58Fade in, fade out.
19:59Oh, a little left hook underneath by Vargas.
20:04Break! Break!
20:05A couple minutes ago, Vargas threw a great left hook to the body, left hook upstairs combination.
20:10He's throwing some beautiful body shots in this entire fight, Jim.
20:15Mashinsky with a nice tackle in the corner.
20:18High tackle.
20:20Pounds Vargas against the ropes.
20:23Vargas trying to remain unruffled.
20:25I think Mashinsky landed a good left hook there, too, Jim.
20:30Well, he may get out of this round without getting knocked down for the first time.
20:38Get on his head. Let him go. Let him go.
20:46Right hand by Mashinsky. Brings the crowd alive.
20:50As for the first time, Darren makes it through a round without getting knocked down.
20:53And still to come, Arturo Gotti back in action seven months after his loss to Angel Manfredi.
21:02Just like Vargas, Gotti has spent a little time at the peroxide bottle this summer,
21:07and he'll be taking that summer tanned and the slightly blonded locks into the ring against Ivan Robinson.
21:13A slick 135-pounder from Philadelphia.
21:18Come on, you got two of them around, man.
21:20We got it. Don't worry about it.
21:22It's time to come around now. Open up.
21:23Come on, baby.
21:24Be careful. Keep your hands up.
21:26He's getting tired already.
21:27Come on.
21:28Come on, snap these points and snap the points.
21:30Come on.
21:31Vargas has become a mandatory challenger faster than any fighter in history.
21:35Come on, come on, snap these punches, snap the punches.
21:41Vargas has become a mandatory challenger faster than any fighter in history.
21:46I have no idea why that's happened.
21:49But Roy, I have to ask you, do you think it's too much too soon
21:52to put him in a title fight against a tough professional?
21:56No, I don't think it's too much too soon,
21:58but you have to remember that he's only 20 years of age,
22:00and what is he going to do 10 years of life?
22:02Is he kind of having an extended professional career,
22:05or is he just looking to go out and do all he can now and get out of boxing?
22:09When you become a world champion at an early age, Roy,
22:12are the bigger obstacles the better level of competition you're going to face in the ring,
22:17or the new set of distractions that arrive outside the ring?
22:21Actually, the bigger problem is the new set of options that derive outside the ring.
22:26How do you have the success?
22:27How do you have your money?
22:29How do you have it yourself?
22:30How do you have the peer pressure?
22:31How do you stay away from the things that are going to hurt you
22:34that you haven't had a chance to come face-to-face with yet?
22:37That's the biggest problem.
22:38Yeah, well, that's the very reason that people question rushing a really young fighter to that position.
22:45He may have the talent to be the champion,
22:48but does he have the stability to stay there?
22:51That's a good question.
22:51He's already a father, so he has that responsibility on his plate.
22:57He points out that it's not unusual for him to be a father early in life.
23:01It's the tradition in his family.
23:03His mother had a child when she was 15.
23:07So he thinks it's only right that he should be facing responsibility at age 20.
23:108-1-C break.
23:11They'll make me take a quick stop.
23:13Right on the cleans.
23:14Break!
23:15Down.
23:17Don't push him behind, all right?
23:19Knock it off.
23:19Referee Jimmy Condon having a hard time getting Machinsky to box clean the way he wants him to.
23:25Break!
23:26Come on.
23:26Let him go.
23:27And he can't blame Machinsky for anything he tries.
23:29He's outclassed technically, so he needs to fight a non-technical fight.
23:34That's right.
23:34He needs a wild war.
23:36Break!
23:37Break!
23:37Break!
23:37Let him go.
23:39Let him go.
23:39Let him go.
23:58Vargas finding it tougher as round four goes along to make solid contact on Machinsky,
24:04who's gained a little confidence since the first couple of rounds.
24:06But this is the type of fighter he needs.
24:08You know, he wants to, if he can go a complete round without getting knocked down, he's going
24:11to build his confidence every time.
24:15And Vargas has reverted to some of his earlier fights.
24:19He's just throwing big roundhouse punches.
24:21He's getting a little frustrated now, unlike the first couple of rounds, Roy.
24:25That's what you want to have these long fights, tough fights for these young guys for.
24:29Exactly.
24:29You can learn to deal with the frustration.
24:30Good body shot by Vargas.
24:34Left hand upstairs by Machinsky.
24:36Vargas stalks Machinsky and throws the right over the top.
24:39Just as Larry said, trying to throw big knockout punches.
24:43Landing enough to do damage, but getting a little wild as round four comes to a flow.
24:48Oh, he has a bad cut too, Jack.
24:50Oh, boy, does he have a bad cut.
24:52He's got a massive cut over the right eye.
24:55Does Vargas.
24:56Yep.
25:00We got it, we got it, we got it.
25:01Don't worry about it.
25:02We got it.
25:03Yeah.
25:06Listen to me.
25:08You have to use your jab now.
25:10If you wait on him to jab, he's going to come in with your head.
25:13The hand bite.
25:16Come on.
25:17Watch out for that swing.
25:18Put that back swing on.
25:20I got it.
25:21Don't worry, baby.
25:22Jab, Jab, Jab, Jab, Jab.
25:23Jab, Jab.
25:24Hold it, hold it, hold it, hold it.
25:25You're right.
25:26No problem.
25:28Okay.
25:30Right in the water.
25:30In the water.
25:32Here.
25:38Two hits, two hits.
25:40The referee, James Condon, indicated that the cut came from a punch.
25:45This is the first real adversity in Vargas' career.
25:49Let's see how he handles it.
25:51Well, he's got the outstanding cut man, Joe Souza, in his corner.
25:55And there's a brilliant right hand up the pipe by Vargas.
25:57So, with the new talent having arisen, a cut over his right eye, produced, the referee says, by a punch.
26:05For the first time in his career, Fernando Vargas faces the real possibility of losing a fight.
26:10And, Harold, the significance of the fact that Condon says the cut came from a punch cannot be understated here.
26:18Well, Jim, it's very important because if the fight is stuck, because of that cut over Fernando Vargas' right eye, Fernando Vargas loses the fight by a technical knockout.
26:28So, that's the way it goes.
26:29I've got it 40 to 34.
26:31Fernando Vargas, of course, he gets an extra point for each knockdown.
26:3440-0, Vargas.
26:39Vargas really hurt Machinsky's body right now.
26:41Oh, he's doing a job on it this round, Roy.
26:44He has come out with new concentration and fired body and head combinations from the beginning, making contact, and hurting Machinsky in the first minute of the round.
26:53Now, Machinsky pulling his way back into it.
26:56And this crowd is getting into the fight.
26:58And this is the fight that Machinsky really was if he could sustain the punishment from Vargas.
27:02And you see him waving Vargas in.
27:04Come on.
27:05Let's have more.
27:06As Machinsky holds his hands and waves, Vargas lunges and fires up the middle.
27:16I thought the right hand he threw up the middle at the beginning of the round might have been the end of things.
27:23But I think Machinsky's ability to take Vargas' punches is improving.
27:27As the fight goes on.
27:28Yep.
27:30But he can't get careless and run into a big Vargas punch here either, though, Jim.
27:33Break! Break!
27:35Down!
27:36Now, Condon's going to have a real job on his hands.
27:39Because Machinsky knows if he can just stay in the fight, he's got a chance to win it on a TKO.
27:45The cut does appear to be alongside the eye instead of right over it.
27:49I'm not sure he's in that much danger.
27:52But it would be a good idea for him to get out of here before we have to call the Red Cross for both fighters.
27:57Yeah, there's a lot of blood, Larry.
28:01Oh, good body shot.
28:02Outstanding body shot by Vargas with the left hand.
28:05Vargas is trying to knock him out right now.
28:07He's sitting down on these big punches.
28:09He's really trying to get this fight over with.
28:18It is a huge, deep cut next to Vargas' right eye.
28:22And he's going to have to muster everything he's learned in his brief career so far to weather this particular storm.
28:33The guns are red, the fighters are red, the fighters' trucks are red.
28:39Everything is red here right now.
28:41Another good left hand body shot by Vargas.
28:44And another.
28:46Vargas concentrating on the body in the last two minutes of the round.
28:49And the position is looking at Vargas.
29:04You got to stay in there. You got to use the hook.
29:18Vargas is corner telling him that he has to get his man.
29:23You heard Lou Dufus say you got to get him.
29:25Well, this is a pickup truck.
29:53Against a diesel 16-wheeler.
29:59The pickup truck is right there with him.
30:03You see the score.
30:05And it's hard to imagine Machinsky's anywhere in the fight on a scorecard somewhere around here.
30:10Letterman's scorecard is, of course, unofficial.
30:12But the danger is apparent as you look at the bloodied trunks and the bloodied face of Fernando Vargas.
30:18The one thing I don't like about Machinsky's corner is every time he goes to the corner, he seems to be having a bigger fight in the corner.
30:24His fight is big enough out here in the middle of the ring.
30:26Don't fight when you go back to the corner.
30:29Machinsky is called checkmate because he played chess in high school.
30:35He came into this fight merely as a pawn in the chess game that Vargas is playing.
30:42But right now, he's standing up to him like a knight, I guess.
30:47Machinsky wobbled by a body blow.
30:49Condom gave him time to catch his breath.
30:51But he never warned Vargas about a below-the-belt blow, so I'm not sure if he thought it was.
30:56Vargas is pulling out all the stops, but still with patience, still with the measurement that goes with the life of a power puncher.
31:06He's not just in there, wailing away.
31:08He's waiting for his opportunities.
31:10He's still looking like a professional athlete.
31:12He's looking very good.
31:13This is what you want to see in a young fighter.
31:15And he's getting just the fight that he needs before he fights for a title.
31:20I think he's getting a little more.
31:23You think Susan can get him through ten rounds with that cut, Roy?
31:25I think Susan can.
31:28All you have to do is make sure he doesn't get hit on it too much.
31:31Got to keep his right hand up.
31:33Yeah, he ought to be boxing him a little bit here, Roy.
31:35Shouldn't he be taking his time?
31:36Yeah, he should move around and down.
31:38Use his jab to stay away from the guy so much.
31:40Then he doesn't absorb so much punishment on that cut.
31:46Straight right hand lands for Vargas.
31:48He's landed three or four of them here in this round.
31:50Vargas just looks unstable in this fight, you know?
31:59Looks more unstable than he is.
32:02That part of it has panned out.
32:03He told us, I won't look very good in there.
32:05That doesn't mean I'm not being effective.
32:07I think Fernando still should put punches together here.
32:19If he does, I think he still can get that knockout that he wants.
32:22He's throwing a one-two right now.
32:23Oh, good body shot.
32:24He's throwing a one-two right now.
32:25I don't think he's going to be too successful with knocking him out with a one-two right now.
32:29No, he needs to come back with the left hook.
32:31It's his best punch anyway.
32:33No, he needs to just fight.
32:34He needs to not try to do too much.
32:38He's trying to knock him out here.
32:40And he may get him.
32:43And Condon stops the fight.
32:45As Vargas pounds away on a defenseless Machinsky on the ropes.
32:56I'm not sure I'd believe it either, Jim.
32:58Five seconds left in the round.
33:00He's moving.
33:02He's weathered these storms before.
33:05I'm not sure the fight had to be stopped at that moment.
33:08I'm going to tell you why he stopped it.
33:10Why?
33:10Heron Hazard looked at him earlier and told him,
33:12don't let this guy take too much punishment.
33:14And that's why he never stopped the fight.
33:19Wow.
33:19So you're saying that the New Jersey State Athletic Commission chairman,
33:23Larry Hazard, spoke to his referee.
33:25Spoke to the referee two rounds before.
33:26I told him, don't let this guy take too many punches.
33:28I can tell by the expression on his face that's what he was saying.
33:30And that's why the referee was so keyed in on the guy.
33:32That invites the question,
33:36why is Larry Hazard worrying more about this kid taking punches
33:40than Vargas being chopped up
33:42like a piece of raw meat?
33:44I don't know, but when I saw Larry...
33:45Why doesn't he tell the referee,
33:47don't let the other guy shed too much blood?
33:49I don't know, but when I saw him point at the guy,
33:50I knew that's what he was saying.
33:51Harold Butterman, what's your take on what happened?
33:53No, my take is that Larry Hazard always tries to do the job.
33:57Larry Hazard did the right thing.
33:59Michinsky was taking a terrible beating.
34:01Larry, as commissioner,
34:01has every right in the world to tell the referee,
34:04hey, keep an eye on this guy, don't let him get killed.
34:06But on the other hand,
34:07but on the other hand,
34:08Jesus, we all hurt that five-second warning,
34:11so help me God, they hurt it in the ramphers.
34:13So, you know, Jimmy Condon,
34:15I know he had good intentions,
34:17but I wouldn't let it go to five seconds.
34:19Try to take care of the guy like the commissioner told him.
34:21Let the doctor look at him and stop it in the corner.
34:24Very interesting.
34:25Nobody's more involved in what goes on in the ring in his state
34:29than New Jersey State Athletic Commission chairman Larry Hazard.
34:33He is the most hands-on boxing official
34:35at the state level in the country, right?
34:37There's no question that Larry Hazard does a great job.
34:40And he did a great job here.
34:42But, you know, trying to take Darren the shoes,
34:45he was taking a terrible beating.
34:46On the other hand, you know,
34:48my take on these things is if you hear that five-second thing,
34:51you know, the hammer go off at the five seconds,
34:52let the doctor look at him in the corner at the end of the round.
34:55You got to point that,
34:55but Larry probably is looking at how unstable Mashinsky is,
34:58just like we were,
34:59and he probably thinking that Mashinsky is in a lot more trouble
35:02than he really is.
35:05Well, so for the second time in his career,
35:07Vargas is stretched into the sixth round,
35:10winds up with a...
35:11Now, we think that that may have caused the cut right there,
35:14and if that caused the cut,
35:16and that was back in round four,
35:17if that caused the cut,
35:19then it was a headbutt that caused the cut.
35:20Here's another look.
35:21Boom.
35:21Yeah, that looks like that would cause a cut.
35:24Yep, and that's exactly the spot next to the right eye
35:26where the cut materialized.
35:28We, in other words,
35:28what we're saying is in our videotape room,
35:31we have not been able to find a punch
35:33which would have caused the cut.
35:34Now, here's the stoppage.
35:37Here's the stoppage,
35:38and you can see what Vargas is doing to Mashinsky,
35:39but again, the five-second warning has been issued.
35:42The round is coming to an end,
35:44and Jimmy Condon steps in.
35:45It's just tough to see it happen that way.
35:48You know Jimmy Condon and Larry Heads
35:50are looking to protect the guy,
35:51and Vargas is doing the right thing.
35:52Put the pressure on
35:53because the guy looks unstable to us, too.
35:55But with five seconds remaining,
35:56you want to see the guts of the guy
35:57get the chance to finish.
36:02All right, now let's hear it
36:03and see it in regular speed,
36:04and we'll stay out,
36:05let you hear what was happening.
36:06Listen for the five-second warning.
36:09He was coming in right at the five-second warning.
36:23Yeah, it was in deep background there,
36:25but you might have heard a bell ringing in the background.
36:27Well, there's a disappointed Darren Mashinsky.
36:29Vargas stays unbeaten at 14-0 with 14 knockouts.
36:36And let's hear the official particulars from Mark Barrow.
36:39Ladies and gentlemen,
36:45the time,
36:47two minutes,
36:4857 seconds of the sixth round,
36:52the winner by tactical knockout
36:54and still undefeated,
36:57ferocious Fernando Vargas.
37:03Vargas.
37:09And you get a clear audio picture
37:13of what the crowd thought
37:14of referee Jimmy Condon's decision
37:17to stop the fight.
37:20Those same people, of course,
37:21will come out and cheer for Vargas
37:22in his next appearance.
37:26People just want more excitement.
37:29Yeah, they want to see more bloodshed,
37:30but I think the commissioner
37:31had the best thing in mind.
37:32I think Vargas did a brilliant thing,
37:33which was to attack the opponent
37:34while he looked like he was weak.
37:37Yeah, all in all,
37:37I think Vargas probably learned a little
37:39and showed a lot.
37:41As you look at the lopsided punch stat numbers,
37:43Vargas landing more than twice as many punches
37:45as Mashinsky,
37:47throwing 86 more punches than,
37:50or 76 more punches than Mashinsky,
37:52and landing at nearly twice the percentage.
37:54A typical performance
37:56for Fernando Vargas
37:57at this early stage of his career.
37:59A good performance,
38:00the perfect fight for a guy
38:01looking to move into title contentions.
38:04And now Larry Merchant is standing by
38:06with both of these fighters.
38:08Thank you, Jim.
38:10Fernando, did you feel you were facing disaster
38:14when you started feeling the blood
38:16pouring down from your eye?
38:17Well, I've never been cut.
38:18I guess you can say I'm not a virgin anymore
38:20from the sport of professional boxing
38:21of being cut.
38:24I got cut.
38:25I thought it was from a head,
38:26but we're clashing heads
38:27when I was coming in with the right hand.
38:29But I thought it was actually his blood,
38:33but then I started,
38:34every time I saw that I would come in,
38:36I saw him, his shoulder bleeding.
38:38I know he wasn't cut from his shoulder,
38:39and it was me, so...
38:41How desperate were you at that point?
38:43Well, I knew that I had to keep my composure.
38:46I mean, if you get cut,
38:48this part of boxing,
38:49you're going to get cut sooner or later.
38:50And it was my first cut, and...
38:53Let's take a look at it on the tape
38:55to see if we can catch the moment
38:58when you cut and see.
38:59Tell us what you see.
39:02Right there.
39:04That was when I got...
39:05When I hit him right...
39:05When I was coming back with the right hand,
39:08we clashed heads on my right-hand side.
39:10All right.
39:10I have Darren on the other side of me.
39:12Was that what you saw happening,
39:14or did you think it was a punch?
39:15Yeah, I'm in the heat of the excitement.
39:17You know, I don't really...
39:18It was a head-butt punch.
39:19Who knows?
39:20That doesn't matter.
39:21The guy showed me a lot, you know,
39:23and I'm not going anywhere.
39:24I'm just starting to build up to my potential.
39:27I'll be back.
39:28As you know, I come to fight, and...
39:29Did you think they ended the fight
39:32before they could have...
39:33I thought so.
39:34I mean, this is prime-time boxing here.
39:35This is HBO.
39:36You know, we get paid pretty good money
39:37to do what we do.
39:38They should let us continue a little bit.
39:39This isn't the amateurs, you know.
39:40This is professional business here.
39:42They should let us go.
39:43I mean, I was dropped,
39:44and I get up, and I fight harder.
39:45That makes me fight harder.
39:46So that's part of the game,
39:48getting dropped in boxing.
39:48I think they should have let it go on.
39:50And what about you, Fernando?
39:51Did you feel you had to stop him?
39:53You didn't want to take any risks
39:55with your cut?
39:56Well, you know what?
39:57When I started clashing heads,
39:58my cornerstone told me,
40:00what are you doing in there with them?
40:01You know, you're a much better boxer,
40:04and you came to box.
40:05And that's when I remembered,
40:06and I told you that I was going to box,
40:07and I started boxing that round.
40:09He didn't hit me at all that round.
40:10I started catching him cleanly,
40:12and at the end,
40:13the referee saw, you know,
40:14that he had to do his job
40:15and stop the fight.
40:16All right.
40:16Thank you very much, guys.
40:18Jim?
40:19All right.
40:19Thanks very much.
40:20So a victory,
40:22and it turns out justice,
40:24I think, for Fernando Vargas
40:25because, Roy,
40:26the referee, Jimmy Condon,
40:28had already made
40:29what appears to our videotape eyes
40:31to be the mistake
40:32of saying that the cut came from a punch
40:34when, in retrospect,
40:35it certainly appears
40:36that cut came from a headbutt.
40:37Yeah, and that could have
40:38really been bad for Vargas
40:39had the fight got stopped earlier
40:40because of that cut.
40:42The referee made a bad call,
40:43and it would have cost him
40:44his undefeated record.
40:46Speaking of referee,
40:47Jimmy Condon,
40:47he's standing by now
40:48without Larry Merchant.
40:50All right.
40:51Thank you, Jim, again.
40:53Jimmy,
40:54why did you stop the point
40:55that you,
40:56at the fight
40:56at the point you did?
40:57Was it because Larry Hazard
40:59before the round
40:59had told you,
41:00don't let this kid
41:01take too much punishment?
41:02No, sir,
41:03not at all.
41:03From my vantage point,
41:04as I was circling in on him,
41:05he was,
41:06the other kid,
41:07Mr. Vargas,
41:08was coming on,
41:09and Mr. Machinsky
41:10was beginning to tire.
41:11He had taken
41:11quite a bit of body punishment,
41:13and he was obviously fatigued.
41:15From my vantage point,
41:16when I stepped in to stop it,
41:18he did not complain,
41:19and he was frozen.
41:20I didn't want to have,
41:21it's better for one punch
41:22too soon
41:22than one punch too late.
41:24Wasn't Vargas
41:25in as much jeopardy
41:26because of his cut?
41:28No,
41:28I don't think so
41:29because obviously
41:30he was the fresher
41:31of the two.
41:32He landed the cleaner,
41:33harder scoring blows,
41:35and Mr. Machinsky
41:35was fatiguing
41:37and a big underdog,
41:38and then he was starting
41:38to come out of it.
41:40Thank you very much,
41:41Jim.
41:42All right,
41:43so now the chance exists
41:44that Vargas,
41:46as soon as his next time out,
41:47could fight Yoriboy Campus
41:49for a world title
41:49if Campus elects
41:50to defend the title
41:51rather than to dump it
41:53and go for bigger money
41:54against Oscar De La Hoya.
41:55You've seen Campus,
41:56strong,
41:57straightforward kind of fighter.
41:58Is Vargas ready for that?
41:59Vargas showed tonight
42:00that he's ready
42:01for just about anything.
42:02I think that would be
42:02a terrific fight
42:03for Fernando Vargas.
42:04I think Vargas
42:05could actually be
42:06great competition
42:07for either of the champions
42:09in the junior middleweight division.
42:10All right,
42:11well we'll see what happens.
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