Rodriguez finds himself still on the path of redemption in 2008; largely because of his loss to Jesse Feliciano last March. The talented welter from Danbury, Connecticut, via the Dominican Republic was clearly leading his opponent until Feliciano dropped Rodriguez three times in the 8th and the contest was called off by referee Charles Dwyer at 2:42 mark.
What followed for Rodriguez in August was also unsettling. Either a clean counter right hand, or a second round clash of heads opened a nasty gash over Keenan Collins’ left eye and with blood curling down the side of his face the fight was halted and ruled, “no-contest” after the second stanza of a bout scheduled for ten heats. Referee Eddie Claudio maintained the wound was the result of an accidental headbutt, however, ringside monitors appeared to reveal it was a punch rather than Rodriguez’s skull opened the cut that forced the fight to be stopped. Fortunately for Rodriguez that bout was overturned by the New York State Athletic Commission.
Working behind a long left jab and sharp right hands, Rodriguez (22-2-1, 13 KO’s) was able to land punches down the middle against the lefthander Browning (20-1-1, 8 KO’s). Twice in the opening stanza, Rodriguez (148 ½) tattooed Browning (149 ¼) with laser-like right hands that caught the veteran from Willingsboro, New Jersey, flush in the face.
In the 5th, Rodriguez drilled the shorter man with a whistling straight right cross to the chin, however, later in the round Browning returned fire and jolted the local boxer with a clean left cross square to the face. Browning did manage to land some shots but Rodriguez was simply the busier fighter who lscored the harder and cleaner blows.
Rodriguez continued to crack the shorter man with wicked blasts and early in the 8th, he drilled Browning with several laser-like right crosses to the head and the crowd cheered his dominating performance. Rodriguez continued to unload and connect with the heavier artillery until the final bell that sealed the victory and his next step toward greater success in the 147-pound division.
Undercard: French junior welterweight “Hurricane” Ali Oubaali (21-3, 17 KO’s) dominated England’s Ashley “Treasure” Theophane (20-3-1, 7 KO’s) over the distance to score a ten round unanimous decision. Judge Don Trella scored the bout 97-92, while both Steve Weisfeld 96-93 and Clark Sammartino had it 96-93, all for Oubaali. The 30-year-old Frenchman is now living and training in New York and he repeatedly ripped into Theophane (139 ½) with hammering and digging shots to the body that slowed the Englishman down. However, in the 6th, Theophane, London, United Kingdom dropped the off balance Oubaali to the deck momentarily with two left hooks to the head and a right cross to the head. Both men unloaded all of the their weapons down the stretch but Oubaali parlayed his early fireworks into a rousing ten round unanimous decision win.
Source: Rodriguez Shuts Down Browning
