Jesus Saracho Back on Track

Richard E. Baker

Rising Mexican boxer Jesus Saracho (11-1-0) suffered a devastating defeat when he faced Deonte Brown (14-0-0) and was knocked out in the 9thround in Bellingham, Washington. He suffered a broken orbital bone. Having a clubfoot, he has always been at a disadvantage. Moving around with only one foot is always difficult, especially for an athlete. After the loss his manager paid to have his foot corrected. Now, his body all healed, he was back in action. He beat Diego Vigil (13-5-2) by TKO in Mexico. He was now ready to take on 10-0-0 Nick Jefferson at Legends Casino in Toppenish, Washington, on a Roy Jones promotion September 14.

Jefferson is a local fighter from Tacoma, Washington, and has never fought anyone of significance, or anyone with promise. This was his chance to move up and be recognized. He is tough with decent skills but he is often out of shape. A win over Saracho would boost his standing. Saracho was not about to let that happen. Jefferson was hand-picked to ease Saracho back into the winner’s circle even though fight fans on Tapology predicted Jefferson to win by 73% to Saracho’s 27%. Everyone knew Jefferson was tough enough, and with decent enough skills, to make the fight competitive and his chances to win were decent. He is trained by Tom Muston, former Olympic coach, and Muston would not have taken the fight unless we was certain of a win.

Legends Casino is a lovely casino just down from a meat packing plant. (Bring your credit card if you want to enjoy the buffet. The seafood buffet is $120 a person and the regular buffet is $50.) They have been staging fights from the time the legendary announcer Jeff Connor started stepping into the center of the ring, microphone in hand, and introducing the fighters. Connors later became the announcer on the series The Contender. Roberto Duran fought Patrick Goosen in one of his last fights at Legends.

Saracho entered the fight with a plan: start slowly and pick up the pace as the fight continued. He is one of he few fighters who actually listens to his corner. He fought cautiously in the first round and was rocked with a nice shot from Jefferson, the only time he was rocked in the fight. He has decent defensive skills. With his foot corrected he moves much more fluidly than in previous fights. He lost the round. Jefferson looked good.

Round two saw Saracho more aggressive and Jefferson still fighting well. The round was fairly even and the edge may have gone to Jefferson. From round three the fight was all Saracho. He proved relentless as he started to pummel Jefferson from one side of the ring to the other. As expected, Jefferson was quickly becoming gassed.

In rounds four and five Saracho bounced Jefferson off the canvass like a basketball. There was not a piece of canvass Jefferson did not meet and, at 38 seconds in round five, perfectly clear-headed, he decided to sty on his knees and be counted out.

The fight was an impressive victory for Saracho who seemed not the least bit winded or tired. He is ready to step up his game in the next fight. He has fought at a disadvantage for so long that he feels like a new man. Impressive what a boxer can do when he has two good feet under him.