Rumble at Rama XII: Pajkic Wins Again - Julaton Escapes With Split Decision

Andrew Fruman has the ringside report from Wednesday night's Rumble at Rama XII.  The show featured the Canadian heavyweight title rematch between Neven Pajkic and Greg Kielsa, along with a super-bantamweight clash between Ana Julaton and Maria Villalobos.

Neven Pajkic (228) made it two in a row over Greg Kielsa (228), pounding out a unanimous decision in the first defense of his Canadian heavyweight title. The champion’s work rate was the difference, especially down the stretch as he let his hands go far more frequently than the economical former title-holder.

Though he had the better of the action through the opening few rounds, Pajkic didn’t fully get going until the fifth session, a round in which he backed up and nailed Kielsa repeatedly with crunching right hands, including a couple really nice digs to the southpaw’s mid-section.

The strong push seemed to bring Kielsa’s spirit down a touch, but also sapped Pajkic energy a little and he failed to immediately press his advantage, looking a little sluggish and arm weary over the next couple of rounds.

Pajkic turned it up again in the eighth, and appeared to drop Kielsa with about a minute left in the round. A clean left hand on the button did the damage, with a follow-up flurry sending Kielsa down - with only the second from bottom strand keeping the big man from a seat on the canvas. Referee Rocky Zolnierczyk however did not intervene and when Kielsa bounced back up, the action continued without a count.

Kielsa failed to keep pace with the champion over the final two rounds, the occasional clean counter far from enough to dissuade the aggressive Pajkic’s strong closing charge. At the finish, there was no doubt as to the winner, with the scorecards cards favouring Pajkic by tallies of 100-90 and 99-91 twice. The action was a little bit more competitive than the scores indicate, with Kielsa hanging tough in many rounds, though unable to match Pajkic’s hustle.

After the bout, trainer Peter Wylie credited Pajkic’s discipline and worth ethic for the winning effort. "When I asked him to turn on the gas and follow the instructions, he turned it on," Wylie said, adding that his fighter "reaches right down to the bottom of his guts to fight hard and that usually means winning."

In the co-feature, Ana Julaton (122) won a split decision over Maria Villalobos (121.6) in a hotly contested bout that some ringside observers felt could have been scored the other way. It was a rough spirited contest, with the winner emerging from the ten rounder with her left eye almost swollen shut from a nasty mouse suffered during the fourth round.

At the start of the super-bantamweight contest, it looked like Julaton would outclass the ponderous Villalobos, as she established a nice quick jab while deftly circling away from the pressure to easily win the opening session. Out-gunned at long range, Villalobos had to work her way inside in order to get work done, and after gradually closing the gap in the second round, she broke through with some heavy shots in the third, appearing to drop the California fighter near the ropes early in the session with a cuffing right hand – only for referee Dave Dunbar to rule Julaton’s trip to the canvas a slip. Even without the knockdown, the third was a big round for Villalobos as she consistently managed to hook shots with both hands to the body and head of her taller opponent.

Julaton’s jab landed sharply at times in the middle rounds, however she struggled to maintain a comfortable distance and Villalobos was able to power her way inside frequently. During these tears up in the trenches, both women had their moments, although it was Villalobos that appeared to land the heavier shots, and Julaton found herself clinching repeatedly on the inside to try and stem the tide.

Julaton had a solid seventh round, scoring points with the jab while staying out of danger, but the eighth was a big one for the Mexican brawler. Determinedly marching forward, she banged away with both hands and just bullied Julaton around the ring, forcing her backward with short rights and hard left hooks.

The seesaw pattern continued into the following round, with Julaton doing a better job of keeping the fight at her range, while successfully tying up Villalobos in close. Villalobos came back very strong though over the final two minutes, relentlessly forcing the issue, with a tired looking Julaton struggling to keep up under a heavy body attack.

The scores were 97-94 to Villalobos, and 96-94 twice for Julaton. The Boxing Bulletin scored the bout 96-94 for Villalobos, giving the Mexican rounds 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 10, with Julaton winning rounds 1, 2, 7 and 9.

A disappointed but classy Villalobos applauded as Julaton celebrated the victory, while the crowd’s reaction to the verdict was mixed. There were scattered cheers and some boos, though the jeers grew louder during Julaton’s post-fight interview.

According to promoter Allan Tremblay, next up for Julaton will be a bout in the Philippines, but a rematch with Villalobos was not ruled out for the future, with trainer Freddie Roach acknowledging the possibility that the women could do battle again.

In the show’s opening bout, Artem Lipanov (242) made a successful pro debut by making short work of Nathan Perrott (229). The Toronto fighter never recovered after being dropped by a straight left with about a minute to go in the opening session by the slow moving, but apparently heavy handed Russian southpaw.

Unsteady after rising, Perrott managed to tie Lipanov up, but was quickly put down again after a short right landed on the inside. This trip to the canvas wasn’t called a knockdown, but it mattered little as Lipanov dropped the former NHLer with a flurry just before the bell. Perrott managed to get to his feet, but with blood streaming from his nose, and his legs clearly gone, the fight was wisely halted.

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