Waipahu's Viloria stops Leon in eighth round

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

Valentin Leon promised action and got more than he bargained for from Brian Viloria.

Brian Viloria, left, hammers away at Valentin Leon in the sixth round of their flyweight bout at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

Three of Viloria's victories have come in Hawai'i, including two knockouts. Last night's victory may have been the most impressive.

Viloria dropped Leon to the canvas six times during the bout before referee Abe Pacheco finally stopped it eight seconds into the eighth round.

"I needed this type of match to bring back my confidence," said Viloria, 22, a Waipahu High graduate. "We talked about going for a knockout and that's what I was going for."

The only rounds that Leon did not drop to the canvas were the first and second, but Viloria won those easily.

The only thing preventing an earlier finish was Leon's resilient chin.

"I knew he was going to be tough, and I give him a lot of credit," Viloria said. "I couldn't believe he kept getting back up."

The streak of knockdowns started in the third, when Viloria connected with a right hook to Leon's head, momentarily stunning Leon. Viloria followed with a series of rights and lefts, sending Leon to the canvas.

By the end of the third round, Leon's nose was bleeding and Viloria started playing to the crowd. Late in the round, Viloria scored on a wind-up punch — waving his right hand in a circular motion before punching Leon in the stomach — and high-stepped around the ring.

He also dropped Leon to the canvas for nine counts in each of the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds. The seventh round included two knockdowns.

The only drama came late in the fourth when Leon dropped to the mat and Viloria thought Pacheco signaled an end to the bout. Viloria jumped on the ropes and raised his arms in triumph, but Pacheco ruled that Leon had slipped.

"I saw the referee wave his hands and I thought it was over," Viloria said. "Then I turned around and wasn't sure what was going on."

The end is almost near in the seventh round as Valentin Leon drops to a knee under a heavy barrage by Brian Viloria. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

That only seemed to anger Viloria, and he went on to continue his domination in the later rounds.

After the two knockdowns in the seventh, Viloria opened the eighth by waving to the crowd for more applause. He then stormed out of his corner and unleashed a flurry of blows to Leon's head to stop the bout.

"I felt like I could jump on him at that point," Viloria said. "I felt like he had nothing already."

Gary Gittelsohn, Viloria's manager, openly complained about Pacheco after the bout, claiming that the fight should have been stopped earlier.

In the semi-main event, Calvin Odom of Los Angeles scored a stunning second-round knockout of Kalihi's Eric Alexander in a battle of welterweights.

Odom connected with a series of unanswered blows midway through the second round, sending Alexander to the canvas. Referee Pacheco counted Alexander out at 1:43 into the round.

Odom improved to 12-4 with the ninth knockout of his career. Alexander, fighting for the first time in a year, dropped to 18-8.

In other preliminary bouts:

John Lopez, Hilo, def. Jerry Saribay, Kalihi, by majority decision in six-round super lightweight bout. Lopez is 7-6, Saribay 3-4.

Rodney Joseph, Wai'anae, def. Mark Mareko, Kalihi, by split decision in four-round heavyweight bout. Joseph is 1-0, Mareko 0-1.

Jay Saribay, Kalihi, def. Travis Tandal, Kaimuki, by first-round TKO in lightweight bout. Saribay is 1-0, Tandal 0-1.

John Clark, Los Angeles, def. Tali Kulihaapai, Honolulu, by unanimous decision in heavyweight bout. Clark is 5-2, Kulihaapai 8-4.