By Daniel Gonzalez

Carson, CA – After struggling to make weight for the WBC welterweight title fight Saturday night at the Dignity Health Sports Park, Shawn Porter (30-2-1, 17 KOs) also struggled in his first WBC title defense against the long and lanky Cuban Yordenis Ugas (23-4, 11 KOs). Nevertheless, he managed to retain his title by winning a split decision, despite not fighting as aggressively as we are accustomed to seeing.

Judge Zachary Young scored the bout wide for Ugas 117-111, while Judges Max Deluca (115-113) and Steve Morrow (116-112) thought the champion did enough to keep the title he won last September when he beat Danny Garcia. The California crowd, who sat through the unseasonably cold weather showed their displeasure after the fight by booing after the scores were announced. If they knew that Judge Max Deluca scored the 12th round for Porter, I imagine they may have protested even louder and longer.

Although, I thought the fight was indeed a close one, I scored the bout 115-113 for Ugas. I believe Ugas controlled the tempo and distance of the fight. He used his height and reach advantage to stifle Porter’s output. The champion simply could not aggressively impose his will as he normally does in the ring. When he attempted to move forward and throw punches, in many instances he missed the defensive minded Ugas badly. Ugas in my humble opinion also landed the more effective punches, despite Porter having the edge on the unofficial punch count. (114-515 for Porter and 128-449 for Ugas).

Ugas was understandly upset by the decision and expressed his frustration to Jimmy Lennon Jr. after the fight. “There’s no doubt about it, I was robbed tonight. After the first round I figured him out and dominated the fight. He had no answer when I was pushing him back.” Unfortunately for Ugas, his lack of aggression was likely one of the reason that the judges did not see it his way. If he threw more punches and was busier, instead of choosing to taunt Porter when the champion did not engage him, it would have been easier for the judges to give him some of the closer rounds.

Ugas, undoubetedly made a case for being the WBC champion, and is fully aware of the opportunity he narrowly missed. “I showed tonight that I belong with the elite fighters at welterweight. All I can say is that I’m ready to fight any of the top names in the division. I’ll be back.”

Prior to coming into the fight, Porter indicated that he would welcome match ups with Manny Paquiao, Keith Thurman and Errol Spence. Of the current welterweight champions, Porter appears to be the most vulnerable, but he continues to achieve very nice paydays. He received $1.25 million last night, and will likely have another nice payday in his next fight. It will be interesting to see who Premier Boxing Champions will match him up with him next.

I predict that Keith Thurman will be looking to get into the ring with him to regain the WBC belt and once again become a unified welterwight champion. His brash question to Errol Spence Jr. in this interview during the Fox Sports broadcast, show that Thurman still believes he is the creme of the crop in the welterweight division.

The welterweight division packed with deep talent  continues to strive.  Who do you think is going separate himself from the pack at 147?