Goossen Stable Shines on ESPN Friday Night Fights

Martin Honorio and Rico Ramos both successfully defended their regional titles, Mike Dallas, Jr. notched another win, and John Molina, Jr. came back strong following the only setback of his career. 

All in all, the folks over at Goossen-Tutor Promotions have got to be pretty pleased with the way things turned out last night at the Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California.

In the ESPN Friday Night Fights main event Martin "El Brochas" Honorio used explosive combinations and all 12 rounds to dominate his less experienced opponent in Wilton Hilario (12-1-1, 9 KOs). 

“It was a tough fight. He is a very tough fighter," Honorio said of the challenger. “It was a long night. His style was very awkward, bringing pressure and coming at different angles.

I hit him a lot but I never felt like I connected on him very hard because of his awkward style. But I was pleased with my performance overall. I am ready for a title shot against anyone in the world at 130. I am looking for one of the champions to give me an opportunity.”

In the initial defense of his NABO Lightweight title, Honorio (28-4-1, 14 KOs) virtually dominated the first 10 rounds, sending Hilario to the canvas twice in the sixth stanza.

It wouldn't be until the championship rounds surfaced that Hilario would find any sort of momentum. It would prove to be too little too late, as the bout was scored 120-106 by one judge and 119-117 by the remaining two, all in favor of Honorio.

“I should have took him out,” Wilton Hilario stated after the bout. “I took this fight for the experience and to show the world that I’m here and I can fight anybody, anytime, anywhere. It’s just a fight. I’ll learn from it and be better next time.”

Undefeated Rico Ramos put his NABO Youth Super Bantamweight title on the line as he faced four time world title challenger Cecilio Santos in the evenings co-feature bout. 

Ramos (15-0, 9 KOs) used his superior speed to keep Santos at bay for the first three rounds. In the fourth, Ramos unleashed a hellacious left hook to the body that put Santos down for the count. Official time of stoppage was 1:19.

“I worked hard. I was looking for a first-round knockout,” admitted Ramos, who was making the first defense of his title against his most experienced opponent to date.

“I just did what I had to do: take care of business and take him out!”

Undefeated prospect Mike "Silent Assassin" Dallas, Jr. (12-0-1, 3 KOs) made quick work of Mexican fighter Fabian Luque, as Dallas was able to end the night in the first round with a hard right hand to the body.

“All of the work I’ve been doing in the gym paid off tonight,” said Dallas, who has been sparring with Manny Pacquiao. “I knew the knockout would come. I just took my time and landed my shots.”

In the nights' opening bout, prospect John Molina, Jr. (19-1, 15 KOs) successfully rebounded from his upset loss to none other than Martin Honorio last November.

Molina wasted no time in disposing of opponent Ricardo Medina, as he landed a hard right hook which put Medina down. Sensing blood, Molina jumped all over Medina to drop him for the second time, which prompted a halt to the bout at the 1:40 mark of the first round.

“I give Martin Honorio all the credit for winning our fight,” said Molina, who fought for 12 rounds with a bad case of the flu. “But at the same token, I’m feeling 100 percent now, and I did what I had to do tonight to show everybody that I am back. And I did it in one [round].”

Random Ring Rumblings:

You can expect Juan Manuel Marquez to return to the lightweight division this summer to defend his titles...Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. will be dropped by the WBC from their rankings while he serves his suspension...WBC Jr. Welterweight king Devon Alexander will be accompanied by Grammy nominated recording artist Drake when we walks out for his HBO televised bout with IBF champ Juan Urango ...Tonight Showtime will feature Vic Darchinyan as he puts his WBC and WBA Super Flyweight Championships on the line against Rodrigo Guerrero ...Welterweight contender Mike Jones will make his return to the ring on April 17 on the undercard of the Kelly Pavlik-Sergio Martinez PPV...IBF mandatory heavyweight challenger Alexander Povetkin will face Javier Mora in a stay busy fight in what will be his second outing under the tutelage of famed trainer Teddy Atlas ...Speaking of trainers, Buddy McGirt along with Orlando Cuellar (Glen Johnson's trainer) were recently contacted by the camp of Miguel Cotto to discuss training him for his upcoming June 5 bout with Yuri Foreman ...Condolences go out to Gary Shaw who recently lost his father Edward at the age of 92...Lastly, cheers to famed trainer Freddie Roach who celebrated his 50th birthday yesterday.

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