A last-minute opponent switch and three nasty cuts weren’t nearly enough to prevent Martin O’Malley from posting his 20th professional victory.
Bloodied by three facial cuts, the Edmonds native out-punched and wore down Danny Rios of San Antonio to claim a unanimous decision in a lively lightweight contest Oct. 13 at the Regent Wall Street Hotel in New York City.
All three judges scored the 10-round fight 97-92, as O’Malley (20-1, 14 knockouts) improved to 4-0 in New York and 3-0 since his lone defeat in July of 2001 to current WBA lightweight champion Leo Dorin.
Fighting for just the fifth time in two years, Rios (14-3-2, 3 knockouts) agreed to the bout earlier in the week after an injury forced Yoni Vargas to back out.
Equally aggressive with their straight-ahead styles, O’Malley and Rios took turns directing the action, but O’Malley’s tenacity ultimately won out. He threw nearly 300 more punches than Rios, averaging 94 punches through the first three rounds.
“I definitely felt I was in control of the fight,” O’Malley said.
By the third round, a slight cut had opened up above O’Malley’s right eye and in the next round an accidental clash of heads resulted in an abrasion near the hairline of O’Malley’s left temple.
“I expected him to use his head,” O’Malley said. “But I fooled myself into thinking I wasn’t going to get cut. I could have boxed him better and picked him apart more from the outside.”
Rios, 31, sliced the bridge of O’Malley’s nose with a straight right hand midway through the fifth round. In the seventh round the referee deducted a point from Rios due to an illegal punch to the back of the head.
O’Malley, 27, took charge with his quick left jab in the sixth, seventh and eighth rounds, landing a combined 82 power punches compared to just 46 from Rios. Another inadvertent headbutt in the sixth round drew blood above Rios’ right eye.
“I sensed he might be in trouble so I picked it up a bit,” O’Malley said.
It was O’Malley’s third outing this year and his first since June 24, when he sustained deep cuts above both eyes that required several stitches in another 10-round unanimous decision win.
After assessing the damage from last weekend’s fight, O’Malley said the earliest he’ll be able to return is January.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
