Robson Conceicao wins the fight against O’Shaquie Foster for the WBC junior lightweight title

NEWARK, NJ – No one expected it. But somehow it happened. Everyone who filled the Prudential Center on Saturday night was thrilled that the 36-minute silence was over.

A few minutes later, they were more excited about the result than the fight itself, when Robson Conceicao of Brazil, making his fourth attempt at a world title, pulled off a shocker, winning the WBC junior lightweight title by a controversial split decision. over O’Shaquie Foster, despite being outscored 109-76 in total contact and 10 of 12 turnovers.

However, Conceicao (19-2-1, 5 knockouts) did enough to convince judges Paul Wallace (115-113) and Anthony Lundy (116-112) that he won, overturning judge Ron McNair’s 116-112 scorecard for Foster and and so does everyone. one saw on the Shakur Stevenson-Artem Harutyunyan WBC lightweight undercard.

In the ring, The Ring found Foster winning 118-110, giving Conceicao the fourth and 11th rounds.

Foster (22-3, 12 KOs) was understandably surprised.

“I thought it was closed,” she said. “I don’t know. I don’t know man. I thought it was easy. I thought it was an easy fight. I wasn’t touched unless I was spanked. I don’t know man.

“I’ll be back. But I want a rematch. They stole this from me. They stole this fight from me. I just wanted to show the world that I can take it out, and if I want to, I shouldn’t be affected. I think it wasn’t fair to the judges.”

O’Shaquie Foster proved to be the most successful player, but two of the three judges saw Robson Conceicao as the winner somehow (Photo by Mikey WIlliams/Top Position)

Conceicao only landed double-digit punches in the fourth and 11th rounds; Foster landed double-digit punches in the fifth, seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th rounds.

According to CompuBox, Conceicao landed only 10.8% of his punches (76 (27 body shots)/701), while Foster landed 25.1% (109 (20)/435), including 33.7% of his power punches (58 ( 14)/ 172). However, in seven of the 12 rounds the fighters were separated by three punches or less.

“This is for my daughter,” said Conceicao, who failed to win the junior lightweight title three times in the past, losing to Oscar Valdez and Stevenson, and fought for the majority match against Emanuel Navarrete last year. “I promised my daughter this, and I was able to fulfill that promise. I am a world champion.

“I think I won the battle. I went down a lot. He could not fight. He was running and running. I am the winner.”

For most of the fight, the fan’s throat got more work from booing Foster and Conceicao than the fighter’s performance.

It was boring, unpleasant, and questionable to almost anyone at the Prudential Center, which is very difficult to watch.

CODES ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/eMpGrHHkEr

– Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) July 7, 2024

At first, Conceicao came out as a guard, coming forward. Foster was patient, teasing the jab. Neither fighter did much in the first round, although Foster connected with a left hook on the jab as the Brazilian backed up well.

The second round took the same course as the first. Conceicao played the bull, Foster the cunning, retreating matador. Conceicao was looking to hit whatever he could. Conceicao misstepped early in the round, and as he made his way back to his corner, he had a hitch in his step.

Conceicao opened strongly in the first 30 seconds of the third. He bent over and tried to find Foster, who tackled Conceicao on the right after missing. In the latter part of the round, Foster came forward, catching what Conceicao was throwing, and picking up with his jab.

As the fourth took place, Conceicao kept tapping and throwing in the air. He would go forward and try to put something in, and Foster would step left, step back, or step right, and not be there. Although when the fourth one was thrown down, there was an uproar from the crowd due to the lack of work.

In a rare moment, it seemed, Robson Conceicao got the better of O’Shaquie Foster (Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Position).

The Newark crowd cheered the fighters on again as the bell closed the round.

At five o’clock, Foster appeared trapped inside. He stayed in the pocket and continued to avoid everything Conceicao tried. Foster began to assert himself, moving forward and arguing with Conceicao. When Conceicao tried to cut off the ring, Foster got out of the traps.

But again, it started to rain. Foster ignored the fan’s pleas and stayed in the pocket, finding holes, going down where he could. Foster landed a right uppercut and closed the round with a right.

Midway through the sixth, Foster floored Conceicao with a three-punch combination. And for the third straight round, the crowd voiced their disapproval. Foster was always narrow, flashed at times, then curled into his defensive shell.

Foster’s defensive tactics continued in the seventh. If Conceicao can’t get to him, why change?

Using a high left guard, Foster kept Conceicao at bay and the fans continued to boo.

In seven, Fister outshot Conceicao 58-39.

Sensing some urgency, Conceicao picked up his pace at the start of the eighth. He tried to stab Foster who couldn’t. But when Conceicao got close, Foster quickly gained respect with the jab, or combination of two punches. In the last half of the eighth, fans booed the inaction.

At the start of the ninth, blood spurted from Foster’s right corner after the fighters clashed heads. Conceicao popped Foster with a fair amount of body shots, though he couldn’t connect on anything consistent. Conceicao seemed to be trailing far behind as the fight entered the championship round.

Up to that point, Conceicao had achieved double figures in only one round, the fourth, up to that point.

The final rounds were mirrors of the first nine. A tired Conceicao tried to connect, and Foster got out of the way and countered.

Apparently, Wallace and Lundy saw something different.

Joseph Santoliquito is a Hall of Fame, award-winning sportswriter who has worked for Ring Magazine/RingTV.com since October 1997 and is president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
Follow @JSantoliquito