Rolando Romero defeats Jackson Marinez with controversial decision

Rolando Romero was the heavy favorite headed into his interim WBA lightweight title fight with Jackson Marinez, but Marinez gave him lots of trouble. 

Rolando Romero gained a lot of attention for his explosive power and incredible backstory, but on Saturday, Aug. 15, he benefitted from a gift decision against Jackson Marinez.

Romero (12-0, 10 KOs), 24, of Las Vegas, Nevada, came into his bout with Marinez undefeated and with 10 knockouts. He looked for the knockout out all night against Marinez, but couldn’t get it.

Marinez (19-1, 7 KOs), 29, of the Dominican Republic, was also undefeated but lacked the hype and exposure of Romero, who’s promoted by Mayweather Promotions. He made a name for himself against Romero even though he was robbed of a victory he deserved.

Romero pumped out a powerful jab to start round 1. It didn’t take long for Romero to catch Marinez with a right hand to the head. Marinez took the first two well and returned with a quick jab of his own. Marinez boxed well and used his feet to escape Romero’s power.

Marinez timed Romero’s attacks in round 2. He caught a rushing Romero with well-placed jabs. Romero struggled to find his target as Marinez controlled the distance.

From rounds 3 through 5, Marinez’s confidence grew.  He looked loose and fluid, while Romero was stiff and mechanical. The experience difference showed, and Marinez exploited it. He scored well as Romero tried to score a knockout with every punch.

Round 6 was Romero’s best of the fight. He landed a strong left hook, but Marinez didn’t wilt and continued to box. Romero pushed him back with a one-two combination and followed it with a left hook. His accuracy improved and continued to heat up.

Romero couldn’t keep up his momentum. He looked tired in round7, then suffered a cut that bothered him for the remainder of the fight in round 9. It was hard to give Romero a single round from that point on. It looked like Marinez outboxed the younger and more raw fighter Romero, but the judges had a different take.

They returned a unanimous decision with scores of 115-113, 116-112, and 118-110. The final score was too wide, but they would have been fair if Marinez was declared the winner. Somehow, the judges gave the fight to Romero.

Romero is an easy boxer to like. He’s powerful, full of potential, and a very likable person, but he didn’t deserve the decision against Marinez. The judges should be ashamed of their scoring.

Romero is the interim WBA lightweight champion, but he’s not ready for the top boxers in the division. He escaped his bout with Marinez with a win but needs more experience and polish before he challenges one of the elite champions.