By Lev Jackson
Middleweight Brian Vera (22-6, 13Ko’s) added another big upset win to his resume on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights, knocking out former world champion Sergiy Dzinziruk (37-2-1, 24Ko’s) in the tenth round.
Vera, 31, started things off with a bang, scoring two knockdowns and landing countless right hands in the opening frame.
The first knockdown looked like more of a slip as Dzinziruk, 36, was off balance when Vera landing a hook to the body.
The second knockdown came from a huge right hand that sent Dzinziruk’s eyes to the back of his head and his body to the canvas.
Vera would continue to press the action the following rounds, taking it to the favored Dzinziruk.
The Ukrainian Dzinziruk would find better success as the fight wore on, but time and time again, he would get buzzed with big right hands from Vera.
Vera upped the pressure, in the later rounds, throwing more punches in his combinations, getting his opponent into corners.
In the 10th round, Vera continued the pressure as he unloaded on Dzinziruk in the corner eventually dropping him. The ref acknowledged the 36-year-old was in no condition to continue and stopped the fight.
After over 300 amateur fights and now 40 professional bouts, at 36, it appears the mileage is simply too high for the former elite level fighter. After going 37-0 to begin his career, Dzinziruk is 0-2-1 in his last three fights, with losses to undisputed middleweight champion Sergio Martinez and now Vera.
With the win, Vera adds Dzinziruk to the list of top-level fighters he holds wins over.
Vera holds upset victories over Andy Lee, Sebastien Demers, two wins over Sergio Mora and tonight’s victory.
The win puts Vera in the right direction towards a world title shot, something that eluded him his whole career, despite defeating several would-be title hopefuls over the past few years.
