Richardson Hitchins was unsure what to expect from his opponent when stepping into the ring at Fontainebleau Las Vegas last Saturday night. But thirty-six minutes later, he knew he had been in the fight of his life.
Gustavo Lemos entered the fight with Hitchins sporting a 29-0 record with 19 knockout victories. Despite stopping his previous ten opponents, he was relatively unknown outside of his native Argentina. But from the opening bell, it was clear that Lemos intended to rumble.
Lemos made his presence known over the first two rounds. He fought with aggression, landed a couple of good right hands, and did impressive bodywork. Hitchins tried to keep his opponent at bay with his lateral movement but was forced against the ropes multiple times.
Hitchins weathered the early storm and began to counter Lemos’ attack in round three. By round four, the Brooklyn native was scoring regularly with his jab.
Lemos continued to press forward throughout the middle rounds. Hitchins countered when he could but was never quite able to gain the separation he needed to take control of the fight.
Lemos landed a powerful left-right combination early in the eighth round that rocked his opponent. Hitchins clinched repeatedly over the next minute to survive the sustained attack from Lemos. Hitchins returned fire with a minute left in the round, and many fans took their feet while the back-and-forth action played out.
The rest of the fight saw Hitchens attempt to jab and move. He did good work with his jab and scored well with the right hand in the tenth round. Lemos appeared to be the stronger fighter down the stretch.
All three judges scored the fight for Hitchins. Fans in attendance showed their dissatisfaction with the decision via a chorus of boos. The 117-111 card turned in by Judge Tim Cheatham was a particular cause of concern for many fight fans. The other two judges agreed on a 115-113 score for the fight.
Richardson Hitchins was satisfied with his performance after the fight despite the boos from fans. “I felt like I won the fight unanimously,” he replied to an interviewer moments after the decision. “He was tough,” Hitchins said of Lemos, “but I felt I outboxed him.”