Salvador Sanchez vs. Wilfredo Gomez in the ‘Battle of the Little Giants’

Plus, Zepeda closing on the lightweight big boys and Wilder rumbled

May 05, 2023

A few weeks ago I joined Andy P over at the Boxing Asylum Patreon to run through another classic fight in our popular Punches from the Past series. Previously we went over Sergio Martinez’s win over Kelly Pavlik in 2010. It was a fantastic middleweight bout. Picking out some of the best fights of all time is what PFTP is all about.

On our latest foray into the boxing archives we travelled back to 1981 and Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for a red-hot clash between two of the best pound-for-pound fighters of the era.

The huge-punching Wilfredo ‘Bazooka’ Gomez, moving up in weight to challenge WBC featherweight champion Salvador ‘Chava’ Sanchez. The latter was a tremendous talent whose career was cut short by a tragic early death. As we described on the episode, Sanchez left an amazing legacy and packed so much in to the final two-and-a-half years of his career. The ultimate “what might have been” story, Chava’s future possibilities have become an interesting discussion, resigned to boxing folklore.

In our beloved sport, there are few rivalries that get the blood pumping like a Mexico versus Puerto Rico clash. This one was aptly labelled as ‘The Battle of the Little Giants’. The challenger, Wilfredo Gomez, swaggered around the ring during the ring walks, smiling and playing to the crowd. The champion, Salvador Sanchez, entered accompanied by a mariachi band. With such a loud and excitable crowd, the MC struggled to make himself heard.

Photo Credit: Ring Magazine/Getty Images

Both men sized each other up early on. Gomez could punch like a mule -albeit down at 122- especially with his left hook, but he was boxing nicely early on in round one. A little too calmly though as Gomez was swiftly stunned and hurt in the opener. Dropped against the ropes, his senses floated out to sea. The Puerto Rican tried to hold on as best as he could under the Sanchez onslaught. Only pride kept him on his feet to finish out the round.

Gomez came out in the second round all guns blazing, throwing heavy hooks to head and body in an attempt to turn the fight around. Everyone, including Sanchez, knew about Gomez’s punching prowess. While the challenger had Salvador against the ropes, the Mexican remained so composed under pressure. He even fired back with some accurate single shots.

Gomez still refused to take a step back in round three. Keeping Sanchez pinned in the corners with relentless flurries, the Puerto Rican often ended on a one-two to the body. Sanchez did a great job of sliding out of range while landing some shots of his own. In a 15-rounder it’s hard to see this kind of pace lasting.

Early on in the fourth session, Sanchez dropped the guard a little to let his excellent left jab roam free. It was a solid, ramrod weapon, designed to create a bit of distance. Gomez suffered some eye damage while Larry (Holmes, on commentary) gave the challenger the round based on aggression. Larry had already dished out a couple of even rounds as well.

Once again, in round five, the action whizzed by at a frenetic pace. Things were moving fast. Gomez appeared to be hurt again by a right hand at the end of the round. One thing was certain, Wilfredo’s right eye had swelled up fast and closing by the second.

The sixth was a much quieter round, mostly due to the fact that Gomez was physically unable to press the action. His left eye was also damaged by this point, as Sanchez posted a three-minute masterclass. Judging the range perfectly, swaying in and out, letting his left jab poke into Gomez’s face, time and again. Salvador ducked out of the way of the full arsenal, in a phenomenal display of ring generalship.

Commentator Bob Sheridan described Sanchez as, “calm and collected” in round seven. Another noticeable, subtle shift took place in this round. For the first time in the fight, Gomez backed up against the ropes voluntarily as the Mexican champion became the aggressor.

Which leads us to round eight, where Gomez, both eyes swollen shut, fired back like a true warrior. However, his efforts were in vain. Gomez got caught with his back against the ropes and Salvador unloaded, knocking the Puerto Rican down yet again. The referee thought about letting it go on but even he knew the game was up for Wilfredo Gomez.

It was a heavy loss for Gomez to take. His first career defeat and to a Mexican no less. Sanchez continued his reign of terror with quality title defences against Pat Cowdell, Rocky Garcia and finally, Azumah Nelson, before he was killed in a car crash on 12th August 1982, aged just 23.

POWERFUL ZEPEDA ENHANCES HIS BODY OF WORK

Back up to the present day, William Zepeda further enhanced his reputation as a ferociously exciting pressure fighter with a second-round bludgeoning of Jaime Arboleda in Texas last weekend. While it was disappointing to see the original main event between Vergil Ortiz and Eimantas Stanionis fall by the wayside, Zepeda proved to be a more than capable replacement headliner.

The Mexican sets a fair pace and is used to throwing north of 1,000 punches in fights. In this one he was barely required to move out of first gear as Arboleda fell three times in total, all from body shots. Zepeda didn’t overcomplicate matters and continued lashing his chin and ribcage until the referee waved it off.

Zepeda’s previous points win over Jojo Diaz showed that he has patience, skill and an engine. This fight reinforced his presence as a vicious finisher when blood is smelled. Zepeda improves to 28-0 with KO number 24. Arboleda, who was previously stopped late by Chris Colbert, falls to 19-3.

NUTHOUSE NOTES

Deontay Wilder (below) was pulled over recently in Los Angeles in possession of a concealed weapon and some drugs. It’s not a good look ahead of a possible Anthony Joshua fight. Wilder needs to be in the boxing news headlines for the correct reason, i.e. fighting top contenders. It’s understandable Deontay took a rest after the final Fury beatdown but he’s in danger of becoming another PBC star who is far too inactive. Al Haymon again failing to make work for idle hands.

Photo Credit: Marca

I was writing a script recently on the man who has fought both Devin Haney and Vasyl Lomachenko, ahead of their May 20 clash. Jorge Linares gave a good account of himself against both men. Dropping Loma in round six and buzzing Haney in round 10, the Venezuelan was unable to put either away in the end.

Linares has his deficiencies (punch resistance and tissue paper skin) but at his peak his skillset and ability to let go with fast-handed combinations made for must-see viewing. That said, when he eventually retires, the 37-year-old will go down as a three-weight world champion. Can’t knock that.

Thanks for reading! Drop a little heart or even a comment if you get a minute. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Speak to you all next week…

About Steve: Experienced boxing writer, author of 8 books and podcaster of over 400 eps. 15+ years in the sport. Covered hundreds of shows for newspapers and Boxing News magazine. Chief script writer for Motivedia channel. For enquiries: stevenwellings1982@gmail.com.