Berlanga Wins, But At What Cost?

It was a slow night at the office for Edgar Berlanga who, despite walking away victorious on his Matchroom debut, left Madison Square Garden with more questions than answers. 

He did, albeit dubiously in one instance, knock down Jason Quigley multiple times en route to a wide points victory at the Hulu Theatre. 

Quigley may well walk away perplexed with the cards (116-108 x2 and 118-106) - which were as unusual as they were misleading. 

The return of Andy Lee to Quigley’s corner was a big boost, and the former middleweight world champion was eager to reinforce to his fighter that he was winning rounds. 

But despite the good work, Berlanga holds force behind his fists, and Quigley found out after taking a chopping right hand to the ear at the end of the third. That was the first of four trips Quigley made to the canvas. 

He ate a vicious uppercut in the fourth round too. 

The fifth didn’t go much better either, as referee Harvey Dock wrongly counted a knockdown over what was no more than a loss of footing. 

But Berlanga didn’t have it all his own way - a cracking right hand from Quigley in the sixth served as a reminder that he was more than just a box and move man. 

Whilst Quigley is the more experienced of the pair, he, like Berlanga, had never ventured beyond round 10 in the ring. 

It was new territory, but it was territory he’d soon want to forget. 

Berlanga shifted gear in the 12th, dropping a severely fatigued Quigley twice more, making the fact the Irishman held out to hear the final bell even more admirable. 

It wasn’t special from Berlanga, but after a year-long hiatus, it may well go down as the most valuable rounds he has ever banked. He can blame the Quigley survival tactics, but at times he looked a fighter irked at his own clumsiness. 

I’m not, and never will be, a fan of the ‘they tried to run’ excuse. When formulated differently, it means a fighter showed smarts to invalidate your skillset.  

Take Berlanga’s win against Alexis Angulo just 12 months ago - the one he called his ‘best performance’ - in which he was praised for working off of his jab and being shrewd. 

Not every fighter needs to come and dog it out with you. Especially when it’s exactly what you want. Quigley was cute, counteracting Berlanga’s aggression and punishing his misses with swift returns. 

Of course, it wasn’t enough, but the Irishman did walk away without teeth marks, so that’s one thing. 

In all seriousness, I think there is a really good fighter inside Berlanga. He may come across as having delusions of grandeur, but that is part of the mould that makes up a lot of these top athletes.

He, like many a fighter, is adamant that the better the opposition, the better the Berlanga. Until we see such, nobody is really inclined to disagree.  

But until then, Berlanga is there to be critiqued, and recently he just hasn’t quite matched up to the hype. 

Still, you throw in Jaime Munguia for the next one, and you immediately have one of the division’s best fights. 

So, to Eddie Hearn and his long-standing friend Oscar De La Hoya, let’s get this one made, yeah? 

Thanks. 

Oscar Bevis