ARTUR BETERBIEV VS. ARCHIE MOORE
count of four and takes the mandatory eight count. Instead of boxing and moving, Beterbiev goes right back into battle with Moore, and this time The Mongoose hits him with a flashing right hand between the gloves, directly on the chin, and Artur goes down again. He gets up at the count of six this time and takes the mandatory eight just as the bell rings. 10-8 Moore Gordon: “Wow! This is beyond belief! What an old-school warrior Moore is.” Bontempo: “Beterbiev must be forged in steel. This is one of the greatest fights I’ve ever seen.” ROUND 5 The crowd is now in sustained delirium, screaming for both men. Moore and Artur meet in the ring center with Beterbiev still pressing the action. He rakes Moore with every punch in the book, and Archie is retaliating in kind with vicious body shots that explode high off Beterbiev’s right rib cage. Moore targets Artur’s left eye with everything he can throw, and it is now badly cut. They exchange violent combinations in mid-ring with all the power they can muster. Beterbiev drives Moore straight back into the ropes with a frenzied do-or-die attack as crimson rivulets of blood cascade down his face onto his powerful chest. His face is a mask of desperate fury, and lurking in his combinations is a lethal right hand-left hook that drops Moore to one knee. Artur runs to a white neutral corner before Fitch can send him there. Moore shakes his head like a wounded bull but gets up at the count of four. Moore signals to Fitch that he is fine during the mandatory eight count, and the referee signals Artur, who comes at Moore like a man possessed. Moore times him with the hardest left-right combination he has ever delivered directly to Beterbiev’s jawline, and down he goes.
Beterbiev rises a bit shaky but with the stamina of a terminator. However, his eye is badly cut, extending all the way into the perimeter of his eye socket. Fitch waves the fight back on and Artur is all over Moore, forcing him to defend as they trade thunderous leather at the bell. Archie wobbles Artur again as the
referee to stop the fight. The cornermen love Artur and agree to the stoppage, as his vision and health mean more than any championship fight. Buffer signals to the timekeeper, and the bell is rung numerous times. “On the decision of the doctor and referee, the fight has been stopped due to the severely cut eye of Artur Beterbiev. The time of the stoppage is 30 seconds into the sixth round. He is the winner by technical knockout… AND THE NEW undisputed light heavyweight champion of the world… ‘The Old Mongoose’... Archie Moore!” Moore and Beterbiev embrace in the middle of the ring as the belts are draped around Archie. “You are a great fighter, Artur, and I will give you a rematch. I promise.” Artur hugs him and thanks Archie for a great fight. The cornermen congratulate each other on a hard-fought but clean fight as the crowd shows its appreciation for what has truly been an epic clash between two brave warriors at the peak of their powers. The applause is still going as the broadcast team signs off.
It doesn't take long for the fight to heat up.
Beterbiev is on him like a tiger. He rains punches upon Moore and Archie goes down again. The bell rings, but the count continues. Moore is up at eight again and, unbelievably, walks steadily to his corner. 10-7 Beterbiev In Moore’s corner, Dick Sadler is doing the talking while the cornermen work on Archie. “This is too early to be taking this, champ,” Sadler says. “Get some respect from him and let him have some this round. Slow his machine down. Bring me some damn ribs with no sauce, high up on the ribs, and keep working that eye.” Bernstein : “I'm thinking Moore vs. Yvon Durelle right now if he can recover. Artur Beterbiev right now, from what I am seeing, would give any light heavyweight a hard way to go.” ROUND 4 Beterbiev’s been told to pour it on, and that is exactly what he is doing. Moore is counterpunching with pinpoint accuracy, and his left-right combinations are hard, accurate shots that catch Artur coming in. But while he’s visibly affected by the counters, Beterbiev is still on the attack. With supreme effort, he forces Moore’s back against the ropes near his own corner and drops the veteran once again with a short left hook. Moore is up at the count of five and takes the mandatory eight. Fitch is looking at Archie closely, but he seems OK. The bout is waved on. The crowd is on its feet screaming for Beterbiev when, out of nowhere, Moore drops him with a short, powerful right uppercut and left hook to the temple. Beterbiev, who dropped his guard while throwing combinations, goes down like he did against Callum Johnson from the same kind of left hook. He rises at the
bell rings. 10-9 MOORE
In the corner, they are working feverishly on Artur’s cut, which is much worse than the one he sustained against Marcus Browne. The ringside doctor is in the corner while Artur’s cutman works to stop the flow of blood. The camera shows the severity of the cut on the big screen, and the crowd lets out a collective “ooooh!” at the sight. The doctor requests Fitch to extend the rest period so he can examine the wound further. The cornermen are pleading for the fight to go on. Beterbiev is having difficulty seeing during the eye exam but argues strongly to continue. Thirty seconds after the rest period has expired, Beterbiev is still on his stool. The cut is too deep and Artur’s vision is too compromised. The doctor signals the
hook, then slides to the side and cracks a right hand into his left eye. Beterbiev is shaken and angry. He retaliates with everything in his arsenal, but it is not 100% precise and just a tad careless. Moore catches him coming in with stiff jabs and hooks off the jab; all land solidly. Artur instantly retaliates, and they are in a terrific shootout, with Moore getting the best of the exchanges in the middle of the ring. 10-9 Moore BETWEEN ROUNDS: The crowd is going wild, cheering both men. Bernstein: “Beterbiev reminds me of Rocky Marciano in his relentless attack and superb physical condition. Moore better hope this is not shades of Marciano, but I must say Archie is setting traps for him and nailing him good. Both men are trading extremely hard punches, with Moore making the fight even at this point on my scorecard.” In Beterbiev’s corner, Ramsay orders his fighter to stay focused and to maintain his form. “Don’t listen to him talking to you, he knows every trick
in the book. Go to the body more in combination and don’t attack in a straight line.” ROUND 3 Beterbiev resumes his attack. Moore times him with jolting jabs, which land and cause noticeable redness around Beterbiev’s left eye. Moore is backed into the ropes and takes a pounding. He rolls under some of the punches, but many find the target. Charlie Fitch is watching closely. Moore fights back with a right uppercut and left hook, enabling him to spin out off the ropes. But Beterbiev stays on top of him with nonstop punches, and as Moore trades with him in the center of the ring, Beterbiev lands a crushing right hand from a side angle that drops Moore hard to the canvas. Beterbiev is pointed to a neutral corner and the alternate referee’s voice booms: “One, two, three …” Fitch, on one knee, picks up the count right in front of Moore’s face, “... four, five, six, seven, eight.” Archie is up and has his gloves wiped off. He tells Fitch he is OK and the fight continues.
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