RAMA, Ont - Canadian boxer Steve Molitor rebounded Friday from his only career loss -- and regained his confidence in the process.
Molitor defeated Mexico's Heriberto Ruiz by split decision to win an IBF title eliminator, moving him into the vacant number two spot for the IBF junior featherweight crown and erasing painful memories of a devastating loss to Panamanian Celestino Caballero in a unified title fight.
"I get better as the fight progresses and I feel that again that happened tonight, but it took a little bit longer because of the fight in November," said Molitor.
"But once I got back on my feet, I felt great, I felt warm, I wasn't tired at all. The last two or three rounds I was relaxed and loose.
"I felt I was back to where I was (prior to his previous loss)."
Known as "The Canadian Kid," Molitor (29-1, 11 KOs), a former world champion ranked fourth in the world by the IBF coming into the fight, beat Ruiz (41-8-2, 8 KOs) in front of a crowd of 5,400 at Casino Rama.
Kelly Zolnierczyk Benoit Roussel scored the fight 116-112 for Molitor, while Harry Davis had it 116-112 in favour of Ruiz.
Molitor, of Sarnia, Ont., will have a chance to win back the title he lost to Caballero. According to Molitor's manager Allan Tremblay, the fight will take place at Casino Rama on Sept. 4 against an opponent to be determined.
"We are waiting for the box-off for the No. 1 position," said Tremblay.
The second eliminator will likely be between Kiko Martinez and Takalani Ndlovu.
Molitor and Ruiz got off to a slow start with few punches thrown in the first and second rounds. The fighters were sparked by loud booing from the crowd, and the fight finally picked up at the end of the second.
Referring to the slow pace at the start of the bout, Molitor stated
"I'm a slow starter in all my fights, especially after the Caballero fight," Molitor said. "I was tentative for the first few rounds."
The sluggish pace continued into the third. Molitor began to land effectively with combinations, while keeping Ruiz off balance.
Molitor continued to increase his punch output in the fourth round, while staying on the move against the bigger Ruiz. At one point the Mexican fighter appeared to have Molitor trapped on the ropes but the Canadian escaped by the end of the round.
Both men came out swinging in the fifth round. Molitor popped Ruiz with a short shot, snapping Ruiz's head back. Ruiz replied by waving Molitor on looking for more, and proceeded to push Molitor to step back.
Towards the end of the round, a straight left hand by Molitor found Ruiz's chin. A frustrated Ruiz responded by clinching and bending Molitor's arm back, garnering immediate attention from Molitor's new trainer Billy Martin.
The tempo picked up further in the sixth round. Molitor slammed Ruiz's chin with his elbow in a clinch, drawing a brief protest for the visiting boxer.
Ruiz cut Molitor's forehead in the seventh, but it didn't slow the Canadian down. Ruiz began throwing wild punches, missing the target as Molitor advanced.
Blood dripping off Molitor's left brow seemed to temporarily slow the pace of the fight to open up the ninth round. Ruiz did not take advantage however, and as time progressed Molitor began opening up on Ruiz.
"The blood was dripping in my eye, it blurred my vision," said Molitor. "It's a part of boxing and you handle it."
In the 10th round both men rested for the first two minutes but ended the round slugging away.
Molitor opened the 11th by landing four straight punches that forced Ruiz back to the ropes. Ruiz responded in the 12th round with several body shots on Molitor who survived the assault en route to his split decision.
"He's fought great fighters, he's produced and he's won," Molitor said of his opponent. "He beat Kiko Martinez who's a top contender in the world, so as you can imagine, Heriberto was a good opponent."
This was Molitor's first bout under the guidance of head trainer Billy Martin and cut-man Everton McEwan, who is also a former professional boxer and a top Canadian trainer in the sport.
"They were actually great," said Molitor about the new personnel in his corner. "They kept their composure, their instructions were very short and brief, just the way I like it."
