Round 1: This should be a good one. The two come out firing away with the jabs but there's some power coming behind the follow up hooks. Katsidis connects with a right hand but Escobedo comes up with a one-two. They both land their jabs and Katsidis misses with a left uppercut. There appears to be a cut over Katsidis' left eye already. Nice left hook connects for Katsidis. Escobedo is boxing pretty well but Katsidis is pressuring. Both land their right hands and then they exchange hooks.
Round 2: Katsidis traps Escobedo along the ropes and he's ripping away with hooks to the body and uppercuts. Escobedo better not let Katsidis work on the outside - he'll want to box from the outside to be effective. Escobed throws a triple jab but eats a right cross in return. Hard body shots from Escobedo and now a combination to the head. We're halfway through the round and you can see Escobedo now looking to focus on the body while still throwing the left jabs. Good straight rigiht hand from Escobedo. Good hook to the body from Escobedo to close the round. Better round for Vicente.
Round 3: Decent one-two for Escobedo. Katsidis keeps coming forward and he lands a good jab. Escobedo is moving in circles and they both land a hook. Just seems like Katsidis' punches are the harder of the two. Katsidis uses his shoulder to push Escobedo back and he rips a left hook to the body.Nice right uppercut lands for Katsidis and then they trade jabs. A right hand lands to the body for Katsidis and then Escobedo returns fire with two hooks to the body. A big right to Escobedo's body and he misses with his combo. Good round for Katsidis.
Round 4: A straight right connects for Escobedo. Katsidis now lands his own short hook to the chin of Escobedo. Pretty good action so far. Escobedo misses with a jab but lands with the right hand. Katsidis is using his head to back Escobed back and he's allowing it to happen. Quick uppercut lands for Escobed but there's not much behind it. A short left hook lands for Katsidis that backs him up. Blood pouring from Katsidis' eye and the round is over.
Round 5: They're trading hooks in the corner here in the first minute of the round. The blood luckily for Katsidis doesn't seem to be a problem at this juncture. Nice pair of jabs from Escobedo and Katsidis lands a right cross right on the cheek. Escobedo is getting walked down...Katsidis eats a straight right hand but connects with a combination of body shots. They both land hooks and Escobedo finishes with a jab but it's Katsidis who looks the most impressive here.
Round 6: Katsidis lands a left hook and Escobedo buckles momentarily but looks ok. Double jabs for Escobedo but Katsidis has him in the corner once again as he unloads to the ribcage. Escobedo spins out finally. Katsidis has Escobedo leaning on the ropes and he's connecting with a handful of hooks. Escobedo lands a good right hand but takes a stiff right for his troubles. A right hand lands for Katsidis and they exchange hooks to finish the round. Closer round but Katsidis takes it in my opinion.
Round 7: Both their faces are looking the worse for wear as they exchange rights in the center of the ring. Katsidis touches Escobedo upstairs and now he has him against the ropes again. Escobedo better stay off those ropes before he eats a flurry of punches. Good pair of hooks by Escobedo with less than a minute to go. The winner gets a shot at Marquez if Juan Manuel loses tonight. Closer round and a tougher one to score. I'd rather be Michael K in that round so I'll give him the nod.
Round 8: A jab lands for Katsidis and just misses with a straight right hand. Now it lands for Michael and then a left hook. Katsidis is starting to land some hard blows in this round and Escobedo begins to look a little worried. A bit of a lull in the action now with about a minute to go. They tie each other up and Escobedo takes a punch to the ear. Escobedo lands a right and then a left but it's Katsidis who's landing all the punches here in the 8th.
Round 9: Escobedo connects with a pair of jabs and then a right to the body. You can see though that his punches have no steam on them and Katsidis continues coming forward. Another series of hooks to the body land for Katsidis. Ooh and Escobedo finally lands a meaningful blow as an uppercut lands flush on the chin of Katsidis. Less than a minute to go and Escobedo lands another one-two upstairs. More body attack from Katsidis which is slowing Escobedo down. Round is over. Katsidis landed more shots but I thought Escobedo landed the cleaner ones.
Round 10: Katsidis eats a few punches but he comes up to Escobedo's chest and rips a few hooks downstairs. Escobedo's trying hard to land his hooks to the head but with Katsidis crowding hiim they don't land flush. Some hooks landing for Katsidis and the round is over. Not a whole lot went down in the 10th.
Round 11: Katsidis lands a right cross to Escobedo's face to start things off. He now misses a left hook. Escobedo keeps his hands low to block the incoming body shots and now Katsidis goes upstairs. A right hand lands for Katsidis and then a follow up body shot. Lots of holding now in this round as they're visibly tired.
Round 12: They're both going for broke. Katsidis is winging away but Escobedo tries to return fire. A quick right lands for Escobedo. A big left lands for Katsidis and Escobedo's bleeding from a cut on his right eye. Vicente is trying, there's no denying it but he can't hurt Katsidis. They finish throwing bombs and the round is over. Good scrap.
Scores are read as: 116-112 (Escobedo), 115-113 (Katsidis) and 118-110 for the winner by split decision Michael Katsidis