I finally got the chance to watch today’s interim title fight in Ghana between local hero Isaac Dogboe and rugged Mexican brawler Cesar Juarez. The Ghanaian triumphed at home in impressive fashion with a fifth round stoppage victory.
The fight opened with an almost immediate slip from Isaac Dogboe (18-0, 12 KOs), but he controlled it otherwise with sharp combinations and notably vicious body work. Things got worse for Cesar Juarez (20-6, 15 KOs) in the second round. A left hook dropped him fairly early in the round and he spent its remainder trying to avoid being finished. It was a bit of a beating.
Juarez recovered reasonably well though. Dogboe definitely won the third on his all around better work, but by the fourth the Mexican was living up to his reputation as a rugged fighter who recovers well from adversity. I don’t think he was winning the round, but Juarez was really applying some pressure and making Dogboe work hard. The 23 year old Ghanaian was countering well, but he was getting it in return too.
The Mexican’s resurgence was short lived in this fun fight, however. The fifth round brought the end. As Juarez was pressuring in the middle of the ring, Dogboe snuck a beautiful left hook around his guard that Cesar just never saw. It stunned him badly and he froze in place momentarily before going down with no legs on a delayed reaction. When Juarez rose he was all sorts of wobbly and the referee waved it off.
The decision to end the fight there has been criticized since by the Mexican on the road. Finally having been able to see the fight, I take no issue with it.
This outcome is a big one for Isaac Dogboe. It moves him from exciting prospect to a top contender. The WBO interim belt that he won here cannot be considered a world title, but it sets him up to fight Jessie Magdaleno for the full title. That would be an outstanding Top Rank on ESPN main event.
Now, amidst all the excitement here, I will note that Cesar Juarez is in truth a pretty limited fighter. It was impressive that Dogboe was able to get rid of him while others haven’t been able to, but he is a guy that fighters are always going to look really good offensively against. I do think Isaac Dogboe is a great prospect/emerging contender, but that is worth keeping in mind.
