IN SHORT…A SPECTACULAR VICTORY FOR “ROCA”

WBC female light flyweight champion Ibeth “Roca“ Zamora showed she`s a “Hard Rock,”  overwhelming a tall order, in the form of American Keisher “Fire“ McLeod in  seven rounds, cheered on by a lively and excited home crowd, in Metepec, Estado de Mexico.
The long and short of it,  was organized by Promociones del Pueblo, with the support of Cerveza Victoria and Playboy Mexico,  broadcast  live by Televisa Deportes.  Keisher all the way from Brooklyn,  appeared in her flame motif costume topped off with a dark bonnet trimmed  with white lace,  to the strains of Frank Sinatra`s New York, New York.   While Roca, grinningly munching a lollipop,  swaggered in,  decked out in a resplendent feathered headdress.

The crowd politely applauded in a friendly and respectful way, as the US National was played.  Then in a bell clear, pitch perfect voice, young Bridget Gonzalez sang a wonderful,  moving and memorable rendition of the Mexican National Anthem,  which brought tears to many eyes and got even more hearts thumping.

Nine centimetres taller and with a seven centimetres  reach span advantage,  rather too upright  Keisher`s  only hope was to keep Roca at bay,  on the receiving end of a ramrod jab, followed up with long straight discouraging rights.  This worked reasonably well  for the first couple of rounds.  Roca was eating leather while unable unleash her own hell for leather.  But by the third, Roca was bobbing and weaving, cutting down the distance,  to hunt down her tall opponent for slim pickings.  Keisher was starting to look like a reed shaken by the wind.

Some rights were catching Roca as she was wading in, but they lacked cuffing or curbing  power, while Roca`s body shots were beginning to thud into an slender ribcage of a svelte opponent who came in so light at the weigh in, that she was actually within minimumweight  perimeters.   Roca launched a sustained attack in the sixth and although some of her right hooks were still only clobbering  fresh night air, many other punch clusters were landing hard, obliging Keisher to fight back,  and thus get entangled in a losing all out brawl.

In the seventh,  Keisher was caught by a big right hook to the head, then another, ruthlessly followed up by a shuddering barrage to the body, which obliged her to go down on one knee, taking a count.  She bravely got up but Roca swarmed in,  clubbing her from pillar to post,  with no hope of delivery.  So  Referee  Abdiel Barrigan  saved her at one minute and thirty five seconds.  Back in a seemingly rather unsympathetic corner,  Keisher appeared to have injured her right shoulder, visibly wincing in pain as the boxing glove of that hand was removed.

Next week  in Cancun WBC female flyweight champion Yessica “Kika” Chavez defends her  crown against ex light flyweight champion  Esmeralda “Joya” Moreno.  Roca who`s previously defeated both as light flyweight, wants to climb up a division and challenge the winner.