By Twine B. Livity/Rocky Mountain Boxing

The inaugural event for Under Dawgs Boxing held at Denver's Glitter Dome Saturday night turned out to be a sensational night of pugilist action.

The main event pitted local heavyweight product Kenny Lemos against Sylvester Barron of Washington state. For Lemos, it was his first bout in over a year. Ring rust was apparent early on for Lemos, as he did not let his hands go very much. Lemos waited on opportunities to counter his opponent; a strategy that worked in his favor later in the round when he landed a powerful counter left hook that stunned Barron. Barron was able to regain his balance but was countered again by Lemos. Barron reverted to using more of his jab in round 2.

However, he continued to keep his lead right hand low and Lemos was able to counter over the top of it. Both fighters looked tired, but it was Barron that had the higher output of the two, peppering his opponent with a few pity-pat combinations that seemed to annoy Lemos. Barron continued to try to control distance with his jab in round 3, landing it effectively to both the head and body of Lemos. Barron landed a lead straight left in the round that was his best punch of the fight. He followed it up with three successive jabs.

Barron lost balance late in the round and was met with a left hook from Lemos, but that was the most activity from Lemos in the round. Barron came out firing his jab again in the next round and was met with responses each time from Lemos. Lemos began to let his hands go more frequently but Barron was able to keep Lemos at bay as he landed several combinations to the head of Lemos. Lemos was able to land some powerful shots on the inside as Barron crowded himself while coming in.

Lemos landed a left hook that sent Barron awkwardly to the canvas. The referee gave "Doc" Barron the benefit of the doubt during the count but he appeared in no shape to continue the fight. The referee halted the bout, giving Lemos a TKO for his 14th professional victory.

The co-main event marked the return of local super featherweight prospect Ricky Rodriguez. Making his return to the ring for his first bout following a lengthy hiatus, Ricky faced Luis Avila of Nogales, Mexico. Avila came out assertive firing a stiff jab at Rodriguez. Rodriguez seemed content waiting to counter his opponent from Mexico. Avila landed a leaping left hook on Rodriguez late in the round and continued to control the pace the final minute while relying on his jab. In round 2 Rodriguez looked to bounce back from his slow start in the first round. Rodriguez was more effective making Avila miss in round 2 and making him pay with counter combinations.

Avila continued to move forward but was met with more counters from his opponent. Avila dictated the pace in round 3 much like he did in the previous two rounds, utilizing his jab and sometimes leading with a left hook. Rodriguez continued to wait on his opponent, but was unable to land anything telling until midway through the round when he landed a counter left hook to the head of Avila. He set up the counter left hook again later in the round as Avila rushed in. The blow sent Avila to the canvas, which seemed to shift the momentum in the bout.

Rodriguez ended the round with a stiff jab to Avila at the bell. Rodriguez began to utilize the jab more next round as his opponents pace slowed down. He timed Avila coming in and landed counter combinations several times throughout the round. It was a very close round, much like the overall fight. The ultimate difference in the fight proved to be the knockdown in round 3 as the judges rewarded Ricky Rodriguez with a victory by unanimous decision. Rodriguez improves his record to 4-0.

Ryan Silva faced rugged Manuel Medrano in the final undercard bout leading to the main event bouts. Silva showed to be the quicker of the two opponents, unleashing combinations early on. There were plenty of exchanges early with Silva landing the cleaner shots. Medrano was able to make his opponent miss later in the opening round and countered with left hooks. 

At the end of round 1, Medrano landed a right hand counter that sent Silva to the mat. Silva was able to beat the count from the referee as the knockdown occurred right before the bell rung. In round 2, Silva tried to settle back into working off his jab but then again was countered with a straight right hand from Medrano, sending him to the canvas for the second time in the fight. Medrano found a home for the right hand several more times in the round. The two fired off punches in a phone booth exchange, with Silva even losing his mouthpiece in the round and fighting through it. 

They continued in a phone booth battle in the next round. Silva began to outwork his opponent, but Medrano had an answer to stop Silva's rally, landing a left hook counter over a lazy jab from Silva. Silva continued to push the pace but was unable to land anything to significantly hurt his foe. Silva attempted one last flurry and again was hit flush with a counter right that sent him reeling into the ropes. Medrano followed up with a combination of blows nearly knocking Silva through the ropes, forcing the referee to call an end to the bout in round 3. Medrano improves his record to 4-4 with 4 KOs.

In a super middleweight bout, Yomi Heredia made his professional debut after previously competing in MMA against Corey Bernard. Bernard, a southpaw, began the bout with a stiff jab. His opponent attempted to make it rough early, winging combinations when the two came in to close quarters. Bernard was able to counter Heredia with a left uppercut, as he continued to barge in wildly.

In round 2, Bernard used his jab as a range finder, using it to time his straight left counter over the top. Heredia was able to maintain an offensive attack only when the two fought on the inside. However, Bernard landed the more effective blows, viciously working the body of Heredia. Bernard seemed to tire in the latter stages of round 2 but his opponent was not able to capitalize. Bernard utilized more of the ring in round 3, trying to stay on the outside and work off his jab. Heredia was able to have some success in the close quarters again landing an uppercut, but was quickly deterred as Bernard landed a right hook to the body that made him back off.

He followed it with more body shots to end the round. In the final round, both fighters came out looking to land the knockout blow. Heredia seemed to have very little left on his shots after all the body shots received from Bernard. Bernard landed another right to the body that sent his opponent staggering back to the ropes. Bernard continued to rip shots to body of Heredia as he became more stationary. Heredia did not back down and both ended the fight with a final flurry. Corey Bernard was the clear winner on all judges’ cards winning the bout by unanimous decision.

In a battle of respective 0-1 combatants, Tomas Nolasco took on Adan Gonzalez in a super featherweight bout. Gonzalez came out firing from the opening bell. Throwing every shot with evil intention to knock out his opponent.  He knocked his opponent down early with a combination left hook to the body followed by a left hook to the head that sent his opponent to the canvas. 

Gonzalez hurt his opponent again in the round with a right hook and followed it up with a combination that caused the referee to step in for a standing 8 count.  The referee stepped in to wave off the bout after Gonzalez landed another thudding left hook that was set up by a right to the body of Nolasco. Gonzalez gained his first professional victory with an impressive TKO.

In the opening bout, it was Chris Arguello making his professional debut as he faced Steve Victor. Victor came out firing a jab from the orthodox stance. Arguello seemed to be waiting to time Victor as he began to land a straight left counter midway through round 1. Victor stayed busy pumping his jab and at times followed it up with straight rights.

The experience of Victor seemed to startle Arguello early on. Victor continued to push the pace in round 2, continuing to throw his straight right behind the jab. Arguello was able to land some effective counter lefts but was not able to match the output of his veteran opponent. Arguello finally began to open up his offense in round 3. He found a consistent home for the left hand, landing it both to the body and head of Victor. The barrage of shots to the head left his opponent with a bloody nose at the conclusion of the round.

In the final, the two combatants took turns exchanging with Arguello landing the more powerful shots. He stunned his opponent with a left hook, but Victor was able to regain his composure and finished the round very strongly despite taking the heavier punches throughout the fight. It was a fairly even matchup with Victor controlling the tempo for the majority of the fight and Arguello landing the harder shots. This was reflected in the scorecards with the judges ruling the bout a majority draw.

If Dawg Fights I is any indicator of what the future holds for boxing in the Rocky Mountain region, fight fans have a lot to be excited for. Under Dawgs Boxing put on an amazing show and the spectators were truly appreciative of the card that had a near full-capacity attendance. The promotional banner will return to host their second fight card at Glitter Dome on September 3rd, 2016.

The event titled Under Dawgs II, will be headlined by a fight for the Rocky Mountain Boxing Light Heavyweight title between Donald Cobb (7-0, 6 KOs) and Joey Montoya (9-4, 3 KOs). The event also marks the return of the "Hebrew Hammer" Andy Klein, who will be facing Jose Romero in a bout to be contested in the Heavyweight division.