In a lacklustre display, two-time world champion Daniel Jacobs barely squeezed past a resolute Gabe Rosado on the cards in their 168lbs clash at the Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, on Friday night.
Scores were 115-113 for Jacobs (twice), overruling a 115-113 nod for Rosado in a largely tactical fight that never caught light. The bout looked in the balance entering the final round, but Jacobs was marginally more aggressive overall.
Having won WBA and IBF crowns at 160lbs, Jacobs (37-3, 30 KOs) is angling for a world title opportunity at super-middle, but looked way off that pace as veteran Rosado, coached by Freddie Roach, posed plenty of problems.
There had been bad blood before the fight, but that never translated into entertainment as Jacobs and Rosado (25-13-1, 14 KOs) boxed a 12-round eyesore that was more bore than war.
It was Jacobs’ last fight in his contract with Matchroom USA and streaming network DAZN, and seems unlikely to spark a renegotiation.
“[The] atmosphere was a little weird – no fans, nothing to really pump you up. But it’s my fault,” Jacobs told DAZN’s Chris Mannix afterwards. “We had a great camp and I obviously didn’t show everything that I needed to. And my corner was obviously instructing me from the corner. But I guess I was looking for shots to load up. I was looking for the right hand. I saw he was susceptible. Every time he would go down, I would land it right. So, I guess I got right-hand happy.
“But I should have formulated the gameplan and stuck to it. But I live to see another day. I got a split decision. He’s a game opponent. I didn’t think it was that close, by far. But at the same time, I guess me being a little stagnant makes the judges give this sort of decision.”
In stark contrast, Rosado was bullish about his showing.
“I felt I won the fight. I surprised him. I outboxed him, I outjabbed him, I countered him, I made him miss big shots,” Rosado told DAZN’s Mannix. “Even when they said the decision, he was disappointed. He had the look on his face of defeat. That man didn’t do nothing to me. He put more hands on Canelo [Alvarez] and GGG [Gennady Golovkin] than he did me. I outboxed him. I caught him off-guard. I thought we boxed a great fight.”
In a career-best showing, Kazakhstan’s Daniyar Yeleussinov (10-0, 6 KOs) swept aside former WBA and IBF 140lbs champ Julius Indongo (23-3, 12 KOs) inside two rounds in a brief welterweight encounter.
Rio Olympics gold medallist Yeleussinov looked razor sharp and floored Indongo in the first and second rounds with hurtful left hands. The Namibian clearly had enough after the second-round knockdown, walking away from the referee when the fight was stopped.
Main image: Ed Muholland/Matchroom USA.