GARDNERVILLE -- There's an old boxing axiom that says there are only two ways to beat an opponent who is outboxing you. One is to land a lucky punch, and the other is to outwork your opponent.
Jesse Brinkley had to go with the latter option, outhustling defensive wizard Danny "Dynamite" Perez over 10 rounds Friday at Stodick Park in Sharkey's Memorial Boxing Classic, which was televised on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights.
Fight judges Burt Clements, Keith Macdonald and Doug Tucker all scored it 96-94 in favor of the Yerington native. The Nevada Appeal saw it 96-94, in favor of Perez.
The 26-year-old Brinkley, 154, survived a scare in improving his record to 22-1, with 15 knockouts. In the fifth round Perez let loose with a left hook to the body that dropped Brinkley, but the shot was ruled a low blow by referee Vic Drakulich.
"That was a clean body shot," said the 26-year-old Perez, who fell to 28-4, with 17 KO's. "Why they didn't score it, I don't know. If they scored it, I would've won."
That's not necessarily the case. All three judges scored the round 10-9 for the 153-pound Perez, and if the knockdown counted, the bout would've been ruled a draw.
"He would've been down for a 10-count," said Perez, of Ventura, Calif. "I gave a good fight. He's not a world-class fighter. (Expletive deleted) yeah, I won the fight."
Brinkley, who has now won his last 18 fights, said he wouldn't have complained if Drakulich called it a knockdown.
"He caught me a little low -- the ref called it low," Brinkley said. "The punch caught my beltline and came up."
Brinkley's saving grace appeared to be his determination and aggression, as Perez resembled an octopus, seemingly wrapping himself up in his own arms.
Brinkley's best round appeared to be the third, as he used an effective left jab to open the tight guard of Perez, who came on strong from the fifth through eighth rounds.
"He smothered my shots," Brinkley said. "I need more experience. He was landing good shots, but I kept it going and attacking. I loved (the crowd.)"
Brinkley's trainer, Miguel Diaz, said Brinkley will undergo a tonsilectomy within the next two weeks.
"He's going to take a long rest," Diaz said. "This is the kind of fight that can take a lot out of you. He made some mistakes, which I expected. I give him a seven (out of a 10). "
Perez said he wanted a rematch, and both Brinkley and Diaz said they were willing to grant it, possibly next year.
Perhaps the gutsiest display on the show came from Anthony Thompson, who stopped Dewey Weliver, of Spokane, Wash., at 1:23 of the fifth round.
The 23-year old Thompson, 151, of Philadelphia, not only fought Welliver, but a case of food poisoning as well. He threw up repeatedly after the fight and during his post-fight interview.
Welliver, 151, proved to be a tough nut to crack, but Thompson, who was later taken to Carson Valley Hospital, let loose with a 15-punch blizzard, which forced ref Norm Budden to stop the contest.
"I wasn't going to fight," said Thompson, who improved to 12-0 (9). "I put my trust in my Creator and came through."
Thompson was unable to finish the interview, as he rushed back into an outhouse.
With the loss, Welliver fell to 14-5-1 (4).
Prospect Steve Lueveno put on a defensive and boxing clinic in shutting down Miguel Escamilla, of San Felipe, Mexico.
Southpaw Luevano, 129, La Puente, Calif., kept the rock-chinned Escamilla, 127 1/2, from landing with any meaningful punches, as he used great upper body movement and spun his opponent into hard right hooks and strong straight lefts.
All three judges scored it 50-54 for Luevano, who improved to 20-0 (9). Escamilla, of San Felipe, Mexico, dropped to 18-5-1 (14).
In other action, Jose Santa Cruz scored a bloody stoppage over Roy Delgado. Santa Cruz, 137, Los Angeles, was battering Delgado, as ref Victor Alegria waved it off at 1:19 of the fourth round of a scheduled six.
Santa Cruz improved to 14-0 (7), while Delgado slipped to 12-2 (9).
Eduardo Escobedo took a unanimous four-round decision over rugged and relentless Rodrigo Facio.
All three judges had it 40-36 for Escobedo, 122, of Mexico City, who upped his record to 9-1 (7). Facio, 121 1/2, Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, walked through everything Escobedo had to offer, in dropping to a deceptive 9-8-1 (8).
In the evening's final bout, Hector Hernandez dropped Alex Bogarin with a single right hand at 1:26 of the first round.
Hernandez, of Phoenix, moved to 2-0 (1), while Bogarein, of Fontana, Calif., dipped to 0-2.
The show, a tribute to Cow Pasture Boxing Festival "Sharkey" Begovich, was promoted by Top Rank, in association with American Champion Sports and Mashelle Begovich and appeared to be a success, with a Gardnerville-record crowd of 1,952 attending the card.
