Liam Paro produced the performance of a lifetime to dethrone Subriel Matias in his own backyard and claim the IBF super lightweight world title in a major boxing boilover.
Paro, who was a $5.50 outsider prior to the fight, beat the Puerto Rican via unanimous decision (115-112 x 2, 116-111) in front of a raucous crowd at the Coliseo Juan Aubin Cruz Abreu in Manati.
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The fight was not without controversy though as referee Luis Pabon was bizarrely overzealous in admonishing Paro throughout, with a point deduction in round seven branded “disgusting” by DAZN commentator Chris Mannix.
Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn branded Paro’s performance as an “absolute masterclass” in boxing and lauded the Aussie for having the guts to take on the bogeyman of the super lightweights.
“We said he’d (Paro) have to get his (Matias) respect, he did that,” Hearn said in a post-fight interview.
“He pushed him back, he boxed off the back foot. It was an absolute masterclass, I had it so wide.
“With three or four rounds to go, Matias needed a knockout. It wasn’t even close, it was a masterclass from Liam Paro.
“And to come to Puerto Rico, the backyard of the guy that no-one wanted to fight, that is a massive win for Liam Paro, a massive win for Australian boxing.”
Paro’s victory was the 25th in his career as he preserved his unbeaten record, while Matias suffered his first loss in five fights.
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The gamesmanship from Matias was on full display before a punch had even been thrown as he was flanked Puerto Rican rappers Yovngchimi and Nengo Flow and took his sweet time to step into the ring.
But Paro was not willing to roll over for the champ and started brightly as he tapped away at Matias, who is traditionally reluctant to throw many punches in the early rounds.
However, Pabon wasted little time in exerting his influence on the contest, aggressively warning Paro in between the second and third rounds to stop leading with his head.
Matias decided to open up and pile more pressure on late in the third round but it did little to trouble Paro, who showed slick movement to create angles and evade the Puerto Rican’s biggest shots.
Paro suffered a slight hiccup in the middle rounds and required an almighty rev-up from his corner once Matias took the ascendancy, yet Pabon wasn’t done yet with making himself the centre of attention.
In the seventh round, Pabon decided to deduct a point from Paro due to what he felt was too many illegal strikes to the back of Matias’ head.
The decision to penalise Paro left Mannix furious.
“What are we doing? There is no way that warrants a deduction,” Mannix said.
“Luis Pabon has had it out for Liam Paro since the very first round. That is disgusting.”
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Despite the hometown advantage, Paro refused to take a backwards step and found a second wind in the later rounds, even bloodying Matias late in the seventh.
As the fight continued into the championship rounds, Matias simply never found an answer for Paro as the Aussie boxed intelligently despite a waning gas tank.
Although Paro had outlanded his rival by some margin, many Aussie boxing fans feared the worst when it came to the scorecards given the fight was in Matias’ backyard.
But there was to be no controversies on the scorecards as the man from Mackay recorded his greatest win to date.
And Paro could even make his first title defence in front of his adoring Aussie fans, according to Hearn.
“Time to bring him home to Australia,” Hearn said.
“He’s been on the road for a long time, having to take all these fights.
“I’d love to see him defend that championship in Australia.”