HBO's Bryant Jennings VS Artur Szpilka RBR/Live Update - Outcome Achieved

Round 1:

Jennings comes out using his long, long reach to keep Szpilka at bay. AS is the aggressor early. Jennings gets Szpilka on the ropes once but Szpilka had the round.

Round 2:

A lot of pawing with the lead hand by both men. Jennings seems like he may have briefly stunned Szpilka as Szpilka is knocked back to the ropes. Jennings is starting to land power shots much more frequently. Szpilka puts a few serious body shots into the bank. Jennings landed a leaping left hook. They start to clown each other a little bit toward the bell at the end of the round. GOOD round. Looks another Jennings round to me.

Round 3:

 The ref makes Jennings' corner wipe off an excess of presumably Vaseline before they start the action again. Steve Weisfeld has it even so far. He is the unofficial scorer for the night, not Harold Lederman. Szpilka still good at slipping in those sneaky body shot uppercuts, almost a Bute-type body shot-left uppercut. Szpilka's experience might be starting to take over a bit here. Jennings seems to sense the change in momentum and let his hands go more. Jennings always has a good sense of losing a round. They're both moving quite a bit through three rounds. Szpilka round, I feel.

Round 4:

Szpilka is getting a rhythm going now. Jennings tries to trap Szpilka on the ropes but can't do it. Jennings is looking a little bit lost right now to me. Szpilka looks quite comfortable. Szpilka round, for me.

Round 5:

Weisfeld has it even through four, as do I. Szpilka's movement is making it hard for Jennings here. He isn't getting pinned down like some of Bryant's opponents when he tries to assault them on the ropes. Jennings is risking himself by coming in more forcefully with power shots. He lands a very hard left hook. Jennings is doing a lot of stalking, it's very interesting. Szpilka wants to fight off the back foot and he's good at it. Very good round with both scoring serious shots. I edge it to Szpilka, but very close.


Round 6:

Szpilka takes a few punches on the ropes trying to clown Jennings. Very strange performance from Szpilka. He gets clocked again in the corner, looking like he deliberately let his hands down. Jennings gets AS on the romes again for a few body shots, tags him hard with a right as they come off. Szpilka seems to be slowing down. AS drops his hands again. Szpilka down on a body shot! Thirty second to go! AS backs up, lands a hard counter, Jennings trying to capitalise but they tie up. Jennings goes after Szpilka who tries to keep his hands down still. WHY?! 10-8 round for By-By!

Round 7:

Jennings STORMS out for this round. AS ready to fight back but Jennings, as Andre Ward points out, seems to smell blood big time. Things slow down again. Jennings might realise that Szpilka isn't as vulnerable as he seemed and doesn't want to blow his load, so to speak. Szpilka landing with Jennings but he's no longer comfortable or in a rythm at all, I don't think. I think AS landed a pretty low blow with about a minute left. Jennings didn't react to it.  He's got AS on the ropes again. They are landing some serious leather on each other toward the end of the round. It's not a brawl exactly but they're teeing off. Szpilka lands a big straight left that knocks Jennings back to the ropes a bit, right at the end of the round. Still a Jennings round for me.

Round 8:

Jennings corner tells him he's got to be a work horse. Andre Ward says the "break down process is taking place" for Jennings. They're both firing in combination but AS looks tired. AS lets himself lean back on the ropes again and Jennings takes advantage. Szpilka again with his back to the ropes, hands dropped, trying to use his hand movement. Not smart so far. Jennings loves it when he gets a guy on the ropes. There's just so much of Szpilka dropping his hands, it's very puzzling. He's throwing though. He's throwing some big shots but Jennings takes the round again. It's away from Szpilka at this point. He needs to hurt Jennings and do it soon.


Round 9:

Nine of ten, Weisfeld has it 78-73 for Jennings. Szpilka seems to fire those straight lefts so far away that Jennings has all the time in the world to lean back with his earmuffs on and block him. Szpilka eats those straights whenever Jennings wants to step in with a lead. Szpilka fiting on Jennings gloves a lot. Jennings knocks sweat off of AS's head and the crowd reacts. They trade hard at the end of the round. Szpilka, again, dropping his hands, trying to move his head out of the way, eating some punches. Jennings round.

Round 10:

Jenkins tells Jennings in the corner they'll steal it if he doesn't stop Szpilka. Hard to believe but we've seen some awful ones. Maybe he's right to say that. Maybe not. AS starts landing some big combos at the beginning of the round. I think it's too little too late but it's hard telling in this sport. Szpilka having an excellent round through the first minute and thirty. BAM! Jennings puts Szpilka down on a big left hook just as Szpilka was trying to take it. Jennings starts knocking him around and the ref waves it off! Jennings by knockout! He doesn't let judges in! Bryant Jennings, in the final stanza gets a TKO! VERY good performance. Szpilka is ended on his feet. I don't know if that was a great stoppage or a better case for not phasing out a standing 8 but he was getting hurt, no doubt about it.