By Daniel Gonzalez

Philadelphia, PA – In the WBO welterweight title eliminator to potentially earn a match up with Terrance “Bud” Crawford (34-0, 25 KOs), Philadelphia native Ray Robinson (24-3-1, 12 KOs) and Lithuanian Egidijus Kavaliauskas (21-0,-1 17 KOs) boxed to a majority draw. Judges Kevin Morgan and David Braslow both scored the bout 95-95, while judge Rose Lascend saw Robinson winning 97-93.

Kavaliauskas who represented Lithuania in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, is ranked number 1 in the WBO, was the favorite coming into the fight. However the lanky southpaw, Robinson, effectively avoided the Lithuanians pressure in the 10 round fight. Neither fighter took real risks during the fight, which made it a very difficult to score. Kavaliauskas was aggressive and came forward the entire fight, but his pressure was not necessarily effective. Robinson seemed content on keeping his distance and boxing, but only really let his hands go during the 10th and final round. In rounds 1-9, he used footwork and flicked his jab just enough to to keep the Lithuanian from landing anything noteworthy.

Unfortunately, neither fighter made a strong case for themselves to compel a match up with the reigning pound for pound fighter in the world. Bud Crawford is set to return to the ring April 20th at Madison Square Garden against former world titlist Amir Khan (33-4, 20 KOs) in a much anticiapated ESPN Pay-Per-View card. Despite underwhelming the steel out crown as the 2300 Arena, both fighters made their respective pitches for a shot at Crawford in their post fight interviews.

Kavaliauskas said, “I won the fight, and I won it clearly. The judges did not agree, and I can’t control what fight they were watching…I am still undefeated, and I know I can beat all of the champions in the welterweight division.

Robinson also tried to make a case for a matchup with Crawford and stated, “I think everyone in Philadelphia knows I won this fight…at the end of the night, I know I beat him. I’m the last person to beat Terence Crawford in the amateurs, and that’s the fight I want.”

From my perspective, if Crawford is dominant in a victory over Amir Khan, the WBO mandatory may be put on the back burner while he seeks the bigger and more lucrative matchups at 147.

Daniel Gonzalez is a Senior Boxing Writer. Dan writes for many publications including Boxing Action Magazine, www.BoxingAction24.com and www.SideStepBoxing.com