Escobedo bests Arrieta in a 10-round decision

CARSON - This was how it was supposed to be.

The crowd was chanting his name in adoration. He was winning with ease. And his confidence was high, having dropped his opponent earlier in the fight.

Vicente Escobedo, the Woodland lightweight and 2004 Olympian deemed potential heir to the Golden Boy throne by none other than Oscar De La Hoya himself, was reveling in the moment early Friday evening. And why not? He earned it after slugging out a workmanlike unanimous decision over Roberto Arrieta of Argentina before a sparse but enthusiastic announced crowd of 1,108 at the Home Depot Center tennis stadium.

Judges Alejandro Rochin and Fritz Werner had Escobedo winning the 10-round bout 99-90, and Judge Lou Filippo scored it 97-92. The Bee favored Escobedo 98-91.

Escobedo (17-1) caught Arrieta (27-13-4) with a right cross flush to the face late in the sixth round, and the Argentinian's legs turned to jelly. Before Escobedo could finish him off, though, a falling Arrieta grabbed Escobedo and took him to the mat with him.

The round ended before Escobedo could do more damage.

"I had him, but the guy is very durable," Escobedo said. "He has a lot of experience. He held me so much I couldn't finish. I tried."

And that is the biggest criticism of Escobedo - he lacks the true knockout power of his mentor, De La Hoya, who has closed many a show with a devastating left hook. As Escobedo's quality of opponents has risen, so too has the lack of knockout wins.

Since his lone loss, an upset eight-round split decision to Daniel Jimenez at Arco Arena on April 21, 2006, Escobedo has had to go the distance in six of eight fights.

Said Arrieta: "The guy has a bright future, but he has to work more on the details - the jab and how to finish."

When he was popping his jab, Escobedo looked unbeatable. But there were rounds when he stopped throwing it, much to the dismay of trainer Nacho Beristain, who yelled from the corner to jab and add a left hook.

It is a strategy straight out of De La Hoya's playbook.

It was also a finish much more palatable than one Escobedo experienced on his way to the Athens Games, on March 15, 2004.

Having stopped Mexican Francisco Vargas in the third round of an Olympic qualifying tournament in Tijuana, the fans turned on Escobedo.

"They started throwing bottles of beer at me and my family," said Escobedo, whose mother, Margarita, is from Guadalajara and father, Rosendo, is from Zacatecas. "I was disappointed at first. I mean, I'm Mexican. Like they say, sangre Mexicana (Mexican blood)."

Being part of the Golden Boy Promotions stable provides a support system.

"We have high hopes for him," said Golden Boy matchmaker Eric Gomez. "He's still learning, but this was a big step for him. He was fighting a guy ranked (14th) in the world, and he did some good things in the ring."

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