Salido’s IBF belt fits fine on Gamboa

The IBF featherweight champion gained 12 pounds overnight before his title fight with WBA champ Yuriorkis Gamboa on Saturday at the Palms. That merely made Gamboa’s speed and quickness more effective, and the Cuban star took Salido’s IBF belt by pounding out a 12-round unanimous decision.

Judge Robert Hoyle had Gamboa winning 114-109, Dick Houck had it 116-109, and Paul Smith scored it 115-109.

“This fight ranks as the toughest I ever had,” Gamboa said. “Every time I hit him, Salido kept coming back. I was in top physical condition, and every time I was forced to fight, I came through.”

The IBF has a rule requiring day-of-fight weigh-ins with a 10-pound limit. Salido, who made the featherweight limit of 126 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in, weighed 138 pounds Saturday.

It didn’t matter to Gamboa, who improved to 19-0, kept his belt and lifted Salido’s with a furious attack.

Gamboa constantly beat Salido to the punch with his superior hand speed, and his improved head movement and footwork made him an elusive target.

The final punch stats showed Gamboa landing twice as many punches (35 percent to 18 percent) and also huge percentage advantages in jabs (22 to 7) and power punches (41 to 21) landed.

Gamboa said he has worked on his defense, and it showed. Salido landed few clean shots, and when he did, Gamboa appeared mostly unconcerned.

His one sloppy moment came 38 seconds into the eighth round when, after tagging Salido with three big rights, Gamboa got off balance. A punch by Salido that grazed Gamboa caused him to slip and fall.

Referee Joe Cortez called it a knockdown. Gamboa was clearly not hurt. But he appeared angry and dominated the rest of the round.

In the 11th, an accidental head-butt caused a cut over Salido’s left eye, but Gamboa was well in command.

Things got ugly in the final round. Gamboa knocked down Salido early, then hit him in the back of the head while Salido was down. Cortez penalized Gamboa two points for the punch.

It didn’t matter. Gamboa was clearly superior, and Salido’s IBF reign lasted only four months as he fell to 34-11-2.

“This is a good victory,” Gamboa said. “This is the Gamboa you’re going to see from now on: More disciplined, more under control and less careless.”

In the co-feature, Brandon Rios survived several illegal low blows from Anthony Peterson and won their WBA lightweight eliminator bout after Peterson was disqualified by referee Russell Mora at the end of the seventh round.

Rios (25-0-1) had knocked down Peterson late in the fifth round and was in control in the sixth when Peterson dropped him to one knee with a punch below the belt. That drew a warning by Mora. Within a 30-second span, Peterson was dinged twice more for low blows, and when he hit Rios low yet again as the seventh round ended, Mora disqualified him. The loss was the first of Peterson’s professional career after 30 victories.

Also on the undercard, Las Vegas super featherweight Diego Magdaleno (16-0) won impressively with a fifth-round TKO over Carlos Oliveira. Magdaleno dominated, and referee Kenny Bayless stopped the fight when Oliveira could no longer defend himself.

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.