Brian Norman Jr. vs Jesus Antonio Perez Campos (13-05-2023) Full Fight
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Transcript
00:00 My knees are a bit high,
00:01 so I'm gonna let 'em work at everything in here.
00:03 [speaking Spanish]
00:06 [speaking Spanish]
00:07 Listen, obey my commands all the time.
00:09 Protect yourself at all times. Fight hard. Fight clean.
00:10 Good luck to both of you. Eight rounds.
00:12 [crowd cheering]
00:15 Jack Reiss, third man in the ring tonight.
00:16 Christina Pontra here, ringside,
00:18 joined by Andre Ward for our first fight on the night.
00:22 Brian Norman Jr. against Jesus Perez.
00:26 Ready?
00:28 Andre, last time we saw Brian Norman Jr.,
00:31 we thought we were gonna be out of there after one round.
00:33 He got started pretty quick in that last one, didn't he?
00:35 Yes, he did. He came out very, very fast,
00:37 landed a big shot, and unleashed probably 15 to 20 shots
00:41 consecutively on his opponent.
00:43 And we thought the fight was gonna be over,
00:45 but it was a much-needed test for him.
00:47 He learned a lot about himself, and he went the full distance.
00:50 You see him starting to work off the jab now
00:57 from that orthodox stance in Norman Jr.,
00:59 and that's one of the things he told us after watching that tape
01:01 time and time again is, "I just gotta slow down the pace.
01:04 "I need to be a little bit more patient.
01:05 "I don't need to rush anything. I know I have the power,
01:08 "but I need to not use it in such a way
01:11 "where I can kind of tire myself out."
01:13 And that's kind of what happened later on in that fight.
01:14 That's exactly what happened, and that's the toughest thing
01:16 for a young, aggressive fighter.
01:18 He doesn't mind mixing it up.
01:20 It's tough to get them to settle down and set shots up,
01:24 and that's what he realized in that last fight.
01:26 (grunting)
01:28 (man speaking Spanish)
01:30 Jesus Perez, 24 and 4, 18 knockouts.
01:35 He's fought a lot of undefeated guys.
01:38 He is-- all his losses have been against guys
01:40 that have a combined record of 69 and 2.
01:44 So he's been match tough, has not had an easy career,
01:46 but looking to bounce back and get in the win column
01:48 after his last fight and loss against Alexis Rocha.
01:50 Not an easy task, but he put up a good fight.
01:54 Joe Perez is a vet, doesn't mind coming in
01:56 to different guys' hometowns, fighting undefeated guys.
01:58 He is okay being the B-side.
02:00 This is the most dangerous time for a young fighter
02:03 on the way up who has a name, who's trying to build his name,
02:06 to face a tough, rugged guy who really has nothing to lose.
02:09 So Norman has to stay on point in this fight...
02:12 and stick to the game plan.
02:17 So far, so good.
02:18 You see a very calculated attack at this point
02:21 from Norman Jr., who slips away from a looping shot there
02:24 from Perez.
02:26 But the test for Norman is gonna be the first time
02:28 he gets hit from Perez.
02:29 Can he hold his composure?
02:31 18 knockouts in the 24 wins that Perez does have.
02:34 And there's a body shot with the left hand for Perez that lands.
02:40 Very easy for a young fighter,
02:49 like you just saw about 10 seconds ago,
02:52 to freeze on the ropes
02:53 when a guy, a pressure fighter's coming forward.
02:55 And Norman doesn't need to do that.
02:57 He just needs to keep walking
02:58 either to the left or the right
03:00 to keep the legs of Perez moving,
03:02 to keep him off balance just that much.
03:05 It's not a dance, it's a walk.
03:10 And there he uses a shot instead of a hold
03:14 to kind of get out of the corner there.
03:15 Dangerous move, but he got away with it.
03:18 (whistle blows)
03:20 (gunshot)
03:21 Nice combination up top and then gets caught up
03:27 with a few shots, but some that landed behind the head
03:29 there from Perez.
03:30 Slips into the corner of Brian Norman Jr.
03:35 No, I heard you. I got you.
03:39 What are you looking like?
03:42 Hmm. What are you looking like?
03:44 Hmm. You look like you're fucking worried about his power.
03:47 And I know you now.
03:49 You heard me? Stop moving so much, you'll go farther.
03:51 You heard me? Stop moving so much, you'll go farther.
03:54 You heard me? He ain't nothing to worry about.
03:56 We ain't gonna worry about him.
03:57 Go in there and get something. You got me?
03:59 Hands up, go in there and get something.
04:01 Push him back. You got me?
04:03 Touch the left side of the body.
04:05 You got me?
04:07 So right now, let's see what he got,
04:08 'cause you ain't even giving--
04:09 You touching me, he's the way he happens.
04:11 See?
04:12 (whistle blows)
04:14 (whistle blows)
04:16 You gonna try to impress him on this one?
04:17 You gonna try to impress him on this one?
04:18 You impress him? Impress him back.
04:20 Yeah, impress his ass back.
04:22 Let him have what he want. Give him what he want.
04:24 (whistle blows)
04:25 Make him respect you.
04:26 Give him what he want, make him respect you.
04:29 All right, we got to hear everything loud and clear.
04:31 The directions from his father
04:32 and former professional fighter Brian Norman Sr.
04:35 Your thoughts, Trey?
04:36 That's contrary to what he and his father told us
04:39 they wanted to do in the fighter meeting,
04:40 which was box and take his time.
04:42 That type of conversation, that type of energy
04:44 that his father is infusing in him
04:46 is gonna cause him to go right back there
04:48 and start fighting when he's supposed to be boxing.
04:50 (crowd shouting)
04:54 I do like the part of the conversation
04:56 where his father said, "You seem to be giving him
04:58 too much respect."
05:00 I like that.
05:01 He needs to remember that he's the boss,
05:04 and I'm talking about Norman.
05:05 He's the A-side, he's the guy that's supposed
05:07 to dominate this fight and obviously win.
05:11 And I do feel like he came into that last fight
05:12 in what he even said, too,
05:14 that a lot of pressure.
05:15 His top-ranked debut, he just signed to a big promoter,
05:16 had his man behind him, his first fight back
05:18 after a layoff, so shaking off some of those nerves
05:21 and taking the time in round one.
05:22 But perhaps his father really felt like, you know,
05:25 he doesn't bring anything that can pose you a risk.
05:27 Go ahead and let him know that you're the big dog in there.
05:29 Mm-hmm.
05:30 (grunting)
05:33 Changes it up with that lead hand,
05:34 kind of threw it like a hook
05:35 instead of a jab on that combination.
05:37 Back to the stick.
05:38 Yeah, Norman is getting a real good left hand
05:40 going in this second round.
05:42 And you notice when it starts to land flush
05:45 right down the center of the opponent's face,
05:47 you know you got something working for you.
05:49 (grunting)
05:51 Good shot right there from Norman.
05:52 Straight a little low, but a good move
05:55 from the young fighter.
05:56 (grunting)
06:00 And I do like how he's getting everything started
06:02 with the jab, with that lead left hand,
06:04 establishing that early and using it
06:06 to set up the right hand, which we do know has some power.
06:09 (chattering)
06:12 (grunting)
06:16 Now you see Norman settling down just a little bit,
06:18 and you know that because the first round he was tight.
06:20 Every movement was tight, but he's slipping shots,
06:23 ducking from shots, pulling back from shots with ease now.
06:26 It doesn't look like he's putting much effort into it,
06:28 which lets you know that he's calming down.
06:32 Whereas Preza's style kind of--
06:33 he just has this herky-jerky rhythm about him.
06:35 He's always moving if he's not throwing punches.
06:37 He is who he is.
06:39 (chattering)
06:42 Stab jab a little more down to the body there for Perez.
06:51 Comes around with the hook and gets caught
06:52 with a counter left from Norman.
06:54 Well, Perez got hit because he threw one shot,
06:57 stayed out there, and the young fighter
06:58 was able to counter him.
06:59 If Perez is gonna come forward,
07:01 he's gotta do it with a purpose.
07:03 He's gotta get in range, which he's in range most of the time.
07:06 Let both shots go.
07:07 You'll catch a few, but make sure you get yours off.
07:10 One shot at a time won't do it.
07:14 There's a nice left that got in there for Perez,
07:15 and a right catching Norman, pulling straight back there.
07:18 So that's a good sequence right there.
07:20 Perez led the combination, got hit, but then he finished.
07:24 (clattering)
07:26 Good shot from both fighters.
07:34 Body shot from Norman, overhand right from Perez.
07:36 Good into the round there.
07:39 WBO middleweight champion Janibek's nickname
07:42 is "Kazakh Style," and that's more than just a name.
07:45 And as he told Mark Kriegel in their conversation,
07:47 it's a method of boxing that soon,
07:50 he believes, will be taken over the world.
07:53 Janibek, Kazakh style.
07:57 Ali...
07:58 What is Kazakh style?
08:00 (speaking Kazakh)
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10:31 - Back to the stick for Norman.
10:33 (speaking Kazakh)
10:35 (grunting)
10:37 There gets out of distance.
10:39 (crowd cheering)
10:41 With the flurry coming from Jesus Perez,
10:43 who is at that significant reach disadvantage,
10:46 and Norman showing that without even having to defend
10:49 with his gloves, simply just head movement
10:51 and get his head off the line.
10:53 - Yeah, but Norman's gotta put that on display.
10:55 The simple game plan for Norman,
10:57 is to double jab and let both your shots go.
10:59 To the head and to the body.
11:01 Go out, reset, and do it again.
11:03 I mean, it's a simple game plan.
11:05 He's not a lot of special effects
11:07 that he needs to employ to beat Perez.
11:09 But there's a lot of posing,
11:11 meaning he's just standing in front of the opponent,
11:14 not throwing punches.
11:16 - And at 22 years old,
11:18 but this is his 24th professional fight
11:20 in a very tough welterweight division,
11:22 if you wanna start to make some noise
11:24 and start to step up and get some bigger fights,
11:26 you gotta make yourself look levels above guys like this.
11:28 No disrespect to Jesus Perez,
11:30 but he has big plans for his future, does Norman.
11:32 - That's right.
11:34 - A flurry of not a lot of punches
11:40 that exchange or that connect there
11:42 for Perez at the end of round three.
11:44 - Ah, I saw that. - One thing that has connected
11:49 effectively has been the jabs for Norman
11:51 through the first three rounds, Trey.
11:54 - And it's a jab that's not a jab that's not effective
11:56 with the jab.
11:58 - This is the punch that Norman needs
12:00 to continue to throw early and often.
12:02 We see that shot land right on the chin.
12:04 It's not a hard shot. It's a shot that stings.
12:06 It's a shot that sort of dizzies the opponent
12:08 and blinds an opponent.
12:10 So if you wanna come behind that jab with the right hand,
12:12 which Norman has a good one,
12:14 you're right in line to do so.
12:16 - I give him nothing to worry about.
12:21 You hit that motherfucker with a body shot,
12:23 whatever that bitch's name, Bryce,
12:25 and kick him with something else.
12:27 You heard me? Get the dishes, work him with something else.
12:29 Look as if you're going to work.
12:31 You understand? Body shot, work.
12:33 - And that's exactly what we were talking about, Trey.
12:35 I said he told us he wanted to go to the body.
12:37 He hasn't done it consistently,
12:39 and his father kind of reminding him,
12:41 "Hey, this is what we worked on.
12:43 This is what we wanna see you do."
12:45 - Translation of those instructions were,
12:47 "You're the boss. Go out there and act like the boss.
12:49 You're not the B side. You're the guy that's supposed to win.
12:51 You're the A side. Act like it."
12:53 - Let's see if we see that transition here
12:55 as we start round four.
12:57 Christina Poncher and Andre Ward with you
12:59 on the call for the first fight of the night,
13:01 a double championship world title fight's
13:04 coming up later this evening.
13:06 He's shown some nice defensive prowess.
13:14 He's been able to show that he's mastered
13:16 some of that distance, that timing that Perez is using,
13:18 throwing those kind of wild shots,
13:20 all that as I say that he gets clipped with the left hand.
13:23 But turning it up offensively.
13:25 - Yeah, he's not getting touched with a lot of those shots,
13:27 but he shouldn't be getting hit with even the ones
13:29 he's getting hit with.
13:31 It's more of Norman going to sleep and not being alert.
13:34 And he's gotta watch that, though, because Perez
13:36 doesn't seem to be a big puncher,
13:38 but he keeps climbing the ladder.
13:40 He'll be facing bigger punchers.
13:42 - That top-- that head grazing with that shot.
13:47 The left hand, he has done a good job of varying it up,
13:51 throwing it in a variety of ways.
13:54 But we've talked about the big right hand,
13:56 and that's what he talked about, and he has let--
13:58 you know, hasn't really let it go.
14:00 Hasn't really let it fly the way that we've seen him in the past.
14:03 - That sequence right there inside was a great opportunity
14:11 for Norman to execute what he and his father
14:14 have been talking about by throwing body shots.
14:16 He had Perez right in the right spot.
14:18 He just didn't let it go.
14:21 [indistinct shouting]
14:24 - Down to the body there, but partially blocked
14:31 by that elbow of Perez.
14:33 - And I think Perez has room to continue to pick up the pace.
14:37 Believe in his offense.
14:39 You're doing the tough work to cut off the ring
14:41 and track Norman down, so you might as well punch
14:43 when you get there.
14:45 Not with one shot like that, but with both hands.
14:49 [indistinct shouting]
14:51 - Just like that. Good two-piece right there from Perez.
14:53 One slightly missed, Norman the other landed.
14:56 - And it seems like Perez finds a little bit more success
15:02 when he throws at the exact same time
15:04 that Norman Jr. is throwing.
15:05 That's when he's been able to catch up.
15:07 - And that's his game. That's what he has to do.
15:09 He has shorter arms. He's not as quick as Norman,
15:11 so he's got to catch Norman in between his shots,
15:14 just like you mentioned.
15:16 [indistinct shouting]
15:18 - And a lot of movement in this fight from Norman,
15:28 and I understand that slowing down the pace
15:30 and being patient, but I didn't expect it to also
15:34 take away from some of his punch output,
15:36 which I feel like we're seeing tonight.
15:38 [bell dings]
15:44 [crowd cheering]
15:46 - Coming up later tonight in our Championship
15:54 Doubleheader broadcast, Jason Maloney
15:56 taking on Vincent Astralabio in a scheduled 12-rounder
15:59 for that vacant WBO bantamweight world title.
16:03 That could be a very entertaining fight
16:06 for the first of our two World Championship fights.
16:09 And then that man right there, Kazakh-style,
16:12 Janabek Alimhanala, looking to make his second
16:14 world title defense of that WBO middleweight championship
16:17 against battle-tested Stephen Butler of Montreal, Canada.
16:21 That's coming up in our main event,
16:23 scheduled for 12 rounds, starting at 7 p.m. Pacific Time
16:27 on ESPN.
16:29 And, Andre, you know, we talked about
16:33 when we broke down all these matchups all week long,
16:35 that co-main event between Maloney and Astralabio
16:38 could really be fireworks. I'm looking forward
16:41 to that co-main event. - Me too.
16:41 I think it's evenly matched, but I do think
16:43 that Maloney has more skill set,
16:45 and I think that this is one of those assignments
16:47 he's supposed to figure out tonight.
16:50 - Let's see if things can get figured out
16:53 for Brian Norman Jr. the way his father would like them to.
16:56 He seems to continuously press his son about picking up
16:59 the pace and stepping on the gas pedal
17:01 as we turn to the second half of the fight, round five.
17:04 Down to the body with the left hand twice there for Butler.
17:09 Perez answers with a body shot with the left hand.
17:11 And Perez is tough. For those of you that watched
17:16 his last fight against Alexis Rocha,
17:18 the scorecards were pretty wide in that fight,
17:20 but, I mean, he showed that he had grit,
17:23 he had toughness, he fought his way back,
17:25 he snapped Rocha's head back a couple times,
17:27 so I think Norman has a little more respect
17:29 than what maybe the record shows for Perez,
17:31 but, I mean, if he wants to show that he is the prospect
17:35 that he believes that he is, I think he's got to take it
17:38 to the next gear.
17:38 You should always have a level of respect
17:39 for your opponents, but not too much respect.
17:42 You got to make them earn everything
17:44 that they get in that ring, and if Norman
17:46 would have came in and executed the game plan
17:48 from round one and Perez resisted and showed that,
17:51 you know, he deserved that kind of respect,
17:53 then that's different, but Norman has given
17:55 and conceded respect in places with Perez
17:58 that he just shouldn't have.
18:00 Just because Perez is, his body is in front of you
18:03 and he's trying to cut off the ring,
18:04 it doesn't mean you have to get on your bike
18:07 and move around.
18:07 - Got caught with a shot there, Dre.
18:09 - Just unnecessary things that are happening
18:11 to Norman right now that just shouldn't be.
18:14 - And when you tell us, and that's Brian Norman Jr.,
18:18 that you want to zap the opponent's energy early
18:20 and show him who the boss is, I mean,
18:22 I can't necessarily say check and check
18:24 on both of those things.
18:25 - Yeah, he hasn't exactly executed that,
18:27 and I think some of it is nerves
18:28 and I think some of it is confidence.
18:29 You know, these are big stages.
18:31 It's not that everybody hasn't filled in the arena yet,
18:33 but this is a big stage on ESPN,
18:36 and that can get to a young fighter sometimes.
18:38 And Perez is playing his part,
18:45 pressing forward, taking the shots.
18:47 - Like that. - Yep, throwing his own shots
18:50 and trying to land as often as he can.
18:54 - Nice lead left hand once again for Norman,
18:57 who for a second maybe thought about switching southpaw
18:59 and then right back to orthodox.
19:02 And...
19:04 Looping shot there for Perez
19:14 as Norman spent most of the fight
19:17 moving around the outside of the ring in the same direction.
19:19 Hasn't really established himself
19:21 in the middle of the ring pushing Perez back much at all.
19:25 Once again, Perez charging forward.
19:29 Norman trying to answer from against the ropes.
19:33 And the end of round five sounds and looked this round
19:44 a lot like the previous rounds have, Dre.
19:48 Not a lot of wrinkles there from either side.
19:51 - Let me explain to you what you feed.
19:57 You feeding everything that he wants.
19:59 He's the type of fighter that wants to get in there
20:01 and get gritty and come fight, right?
20:03 He's like a hunter. He wants to come get his prey.
20:06 The moving and shit you're doing,
20:08 I want you to be that motherfucking hunter that--
20:10 I mean, I want you to be that prey that when you come get me,
20:12 it's like, "Yeah, I'm gonna give you what you want,
20:14 and you make your move the other way."
20:15 - The game plan for Norman was to go down to the body
20:18 early and often.
20:20 He hasn't done that, but the few times he has--
20:22 that's borderline shot right there.
20:24 He's done some good work. You see another shot
20:26 is gonna be followed right there,
20:28 and you see the reaction from Perez.
20:30 Those kind of shots can paralyze you.
20:32 Those shots drain you. They take your energy.
20:35 That's what Norman needs to do more of
20:37 for the duration of this fight.
20:40 [whistle blows]
20:43 - Guess the fuck you do, left hand.
20:46 Stand--
20:48 [bell dings]
20:51 - And you heard his father and trainer asking
20:56 for the left hand, which he's used in different ways,
21:00 primarily with the jab, which we showed you earlier.
21:02 He's hooked it a couple times.
21:05 For me, it's more of the right hand that I haven't really seen him
21:07 sit down and let it go and throw it how we've seen in the past.
21:10 I know I said that before, but I'm just kind of surprised
21:13 at why he's yet to really unleash that.
21:16 - I think it's both. I think, like we said,
21:18 the left sets up the right, but I think there's even more work
21:21 that Norman could be doing with the left hand
21:23 because he's had success.
21:25 It's landed flush on the face of Perez
21:28 pretty much most of the time he throws it,
21:30 so why not-- why get away from it?
21:32 Why get away from something that's working for him
21:35 and make the fight harder?
21:36 And that's just what Norman is doing.
21:38 He's making a fight harder than it has to be.
21:42 - And every now and again in these exchanges,
21:44 Perez gets one, and, I mean, Norman gets it right back,
21:47 but it's just enough to make you think, like,
21:49 "Okay, I'm gonna get back moving around the outside again
21:51 "instead of just trying to stand there maybe a little bit
21:53 "and mix it up," showing him, you know,
21:56 what he's capable of and that he's on another level.
21:59 Right now he's just confident with working around the outside.
22:01 - Yeah, that's called separation.
22:03 And at this stage, when you're trying to present
22:06 and represent yourself-- good jab right there from Norman--
22:08 to the public, to the world, you want separation.
22:11 You want to see the difference between you
22:13 and everybody that you fight,
22:14 and Norman's not doing that at the moment.
22:17 - And a little shot on the inside.
22:22 Scores for Perez, who's thrown a couple uppercuts
22:25 in that exchange.
22:27 Down to the body goes Perez.
22:30 - And Norman has been in--
22:35 and I know sparring is a different thing than a fight,
22:37 but he's been in there with elite guys.
22:39 He sparred the Boots Ennis's.
22:40 He sparred the Terrence Crawford's.
22:42 So--and he didn't get sent home.
22:45 So he can hang with the upper-echelon guys,
22:48 at least in the gym, and you want to see that translate
22:50 in these real fights.
22:52 - And not take shots like that.
22:54 Pulling out after an exchange.
22:56 Another sneaky uppercut gets in for Perez.
23:00 - Norman better be careful,
23:02 'cause Perez is getting closer and closer,
23:04 and he may not be a one-punch knockout guy,
23:07 but he can put two and three together,
23:08 and you can be hurt.
23:19 - Perez with that lead left hand down to the body.
23:23 Looking to mix it up here in these exchanges.
23:36 Not a lot of these punches landing flush, Dre,
23:38 but still, maybe showing a little bit
23:40 of some ring generalship or kind of reminding him,
23:41 like, "I'm still very much, you know,
23:43 "a factor in this fight, somebody that you gotta deal with,
23:46 because I'm constantly putting on the pressure."
23:48 - Absolutely.
23:50 [Bell rings]
23:52 - One of the main reasons why we're here
23:58 is that man right there, Gabe Flores Jr.,
24:01 Stockton's king, making his way to his locker room
24:04 back in this arena where he had a spectacular performance,
24:08 knockout performance here in 2019.
24:10 It's been some, you know, tumultuous waters since that point.
24:13 He's suffered two defeats since then
24:16 and is looking to rebound and get back into the ring
24:18 and get in the win column.
24:20 Do you think, Dre, he gets that done tonight?
24:22 - I think he does get it done tonight.
24:24 As you mentioned, boxing is a very difficult sport.
24:27 It's hard, especially on the way up when you got a name
24:30 and everybody's gunning for you.
24:32 He's had some slip-ups in his young career,
24:35 and many have written him off.
24:37 Tonight's the first step to turn the page
24:40 and to change that narrative.
24:41 - Do you think coming back and having this fight
24:43 after two losses in your last three at home,
24:45 is that a welcomed thing,
24:47 or is it even more pressure on you
24:49 when you already have that innate lead
24:50 because you're coming off some losses?
24:51 - I think it's a beautiful thing.
24:52 I think it can get him kick-started
24:54 and get his confidence back
24:56 to help propel him to the next phase.
24:59 - Spoken from a Bay Area native himself.
25:02 - Yes.
25:03 - Got to drive here in your own car,
25:04 got to go home after this.
25:06 - I'm not complaining.
25:07 - A rare home game for you, Andre Ward.
25:10 All right, penultimate round.
25:12 This one's scheduled for eight.
25:14 A fight that maybe we've nitpicked a little bit
25:17 because of the way he's been fighting.
25:19 - Yeah, I think it's a fight that's been
25:21 a little bit of a surprise for him.
25:23 I mean, he's a freshman junior.
25:24 I mean, he's pretty much won every round,
25:27 but I think we had high expectations
25:29 based on what he told us when we spoke with him.
25:31 - Well, just not even that, but what he told us,
25:33 but also what we see in him.
25:34 - Right, the potential.
25:35 - He has skill, he has ability,
25:37 and he's at that place in his career
25:39 where he should step it up.
25:41 And we're not just saying it.
25:42 His own corner, his father, his coach is asking for it.
25:45 So I think it's warranted,
25:47 I mean, you got a guy, yeah, he has four losses.
25:49 He's coming out of, you know, loss, win, loss, win,
25:51 loss, win on his record, but all those losses
25:53 are by unanimous decision against, you know,
25:55 two undefeated opponents and two opponents
25:57 with just one loss, so.
25:59 - The matchmakers are matching their young fighters
26:01 for them to gain confidence and to grow,
26:04 but make no mistake about it,
26:05 they're watching and processing and studying,
26:08 what does this guy really have?
26:10 And I'm talking about Norman.
26:16 - Norman with a nice left hand to the body.
26:19 Back to the jab, one, two, hook,
26:32 and then right back answering is Perez.
26:35 - Taking nothing from Perez, he's doing his part,
26:38 but Norman just looks flat.
26:39 He looks like he went flat after the third round.
26:42 He doesn't have the energy
26:44 and the pop in his punch that we saw in his previous fight.
26:47 He was in a tough fight, but we saw him have these surges
26:50 where he stayed strong all the way through.
26:52 We're just not seeing that in this fight.
26:54 And that's part Norman and part Perez.
26:59 - And it's kind of, I'm curious to,
27:04 to what we would attribute that to,
27:06 considering the amount of time that he has prepared,
27:08 the work that he got coming out of Atlanta,
27:10 going to Las Vegas, top-ranked gym,
27:12 Mayweather Gym, sparring with Amari Jones,
27:14 Kevin Johnson, he's got some good work in,
27:16 but I do agree that we're,
27:18 that explosiveness that we've seen from him in the past,
27:21 even just as recent as his last fight,
27:23 just not there tonight.
27:25 - Yeah, if anything, that's not him under-training,
27:27 that's him over-training.
27:29 It's too much work that might have gone into this,
27:31 but you can take nothing away from Perez from round one.
27:33 He's stayed in the pocket, done his thing,
27:36 and followed his script, which is press forward,
27:38 be tough, be durable, and keep pressing the action.
27:43 - And he's landing more and more.
27:45 - Exactly, I was gonna say, and he keeps each round,
27:47 he used to be like, "Oh, that was one good shot,"
27:49 and then it's two, and then it's three.
27:51 - Twos and threes, yes.
27:53 - All right, round seven in the books.
27:57 One more round to go.
27:59 This fight, Car, we got a ton of eight-rounders scheduled.
28:02 Let's listen to what his dad has to tell him
28:04 here for this last round.
28:06 - Who could?
28:08 - And listen.
28:10 - It look like you okay with B.D. Ockels,
28:12 'cause I'm not.
28:14 You okay with me, D'Oc? Huh?
28:16 Okay, 'cause I'm not okay with that.
28:18 You got me?
28:20 I don't know what you got going on, bro.
28:22 You're going one punch, you're moving.
28:24 - Nope, I'm good. - You heard me?
28:26 I need you to let your hands slide.
28:28 Last round. You heard me?
28:30 Plant your feet, go to fucking work.
28:35 You got me? - Yeah.
28:37 - You know everything to do. You know what to do.
28:39 - Yeah. - Go to work.
28:41 - We were all kind of on the same page there, Dre,
28:43 as far as what we expected and what his father wants from him.
28:46 - He's just not doing it. He doesn't seem to have it tonight.
28:49 Physically, mentally. I don't want to speculate too deep.
28:52 I don't know what type of camp they had,
28:54 but what I see is a flat fighter.
28:56 When you see a fighter who goes off a cliff
28:58 from an energy standpoint after round two,
29:00 that leads you to believe that he was over-trained.
29:03 - And you did hear at the end of that round, Jack Reiss,
29:05 talk about a cut from an accidental headbutt
29:07 above the right eyebrow, or on the right eyebrow there,
29:10 of Jesus Perez, but it looks like they got it under control,
29:13 and here's the eighth round.
29:15 - I'm Perez. I want to close big.
29:18 I have no idea how the judges are scoring this,
29:21 and I want to finish this fight strong
29:23 and try to get a shot through and try to hurt the young fighter.
29:26 - Nice shot there. Lands his.
29:34 Perez continuing to come forward
29:38 and stock-hooking that lead left hand like he has.
29:41 The blood streaming once again from that cut above the right eyebrow.
29:46 - I know it sounds brutal if you're at home and you're not a boxer,
29:52 but you want to target that eye, the eye that's bleeding,
29:55 and you want to try to hit him as often as you can,
29:58 but here goes Norman, dropping his left hand, drifting back,
30:01 and Perez counters with an overhand right.
30:04 - It's a nice counter shot. He saw that jab coming,
30:07 and that jab has been peppering that side of his face all fight long.
30:12 - Good right hand from Norman,
30:14 but an answer from Perez. Didn't land, but he tried.
30:17 - A nice body shot gets in from Norman there,
30:22 and then there's a counter stick shot from Perez.
30:24 - Good exchanges from both men.
30:26 - And this is the most Dre that Butler--
30:33 I mean, excuse me, Butler--
30:35 from his junior year stood in there and fought
30:37 instead of moving around outside of the ring,
30:39 but maybe that blood's bringing that energy.
30:41 - I think it's the blood and it's the last round.
30:43 He can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
30:45 That's what that is.
30:47 - Takes a shot and then gives a shot down to the body.
30:52 - Perez should go. Let both hands go. He should go right now.
30:57 - Both fighters getting shots in here. Just under a minute to go now
31:04 in this eighth and final round.
31:06 - This is how we saw Norman fight his last fight.
31:09 - And what maybe we thought more of.
31:11 Your uppercut gets in from Perez.
31:13 - That's what you want if you're Perez.
31:15 You can't hurt him if you don't throw.
31:17 - Maybe we'll just start the fight over from right now.
31:22 - Or maybe go two more rounds. - Right, that's it. Why not?
31:25 - Good shot on the top of the head from Perez with that overhand right.
31:34 Jab and then answer with Norman, that right hand, right under that left elbow.
31:40 There's the body, there's a nice left hand that gets in for Norman.
31:43 - Best round of the fight for both fighters.
31:47 - Oh, nice left hand. - Oh, just missed that one.
31:54 - Misses with that shot.
31:56 Goes right back to it. Definitely not a knockdown there.
32:00 As they get their feet tangled up.
32:03 But that's it. That's the end of the fight.
32:06 I mean, come on. That was the best round of the fight and it's got to end like that.
32:10 - I'm telling you, they saw the light. They said, "We can let it all hang out.
32:13 This fight's going to be over in a minute and a half."
32:15 - Maybe he should have told his son it was a four-rounder
32:18 and then got him to pick it up.
32:21 I'm sure he'll get a talking to nonetheless.
32:24 - I'm very curious to see how these judges score at this point.
32:27 - Sure, sure.
32:29 And I think Jesus Perez is satisfied with his performance.
32:32 He's up on the ropes giving some acknowledgement to the crowd here in Stockton, California.
32:37 We'll look at some highlights while the judges tally up the decision.
32:42 - Norman did some good work early on with that left hand.
32:46 It started to land flush, as you see right there.
32:49 And you were waiting for the right hand to come behind that.
32:52 It just never did. That gave Perez confidence to throw his own right hands
32:56 and his hooks and his body shots.
32:58 And Norman being a tough fighter, he never just stopped throwing,
33:01 but he opened himself up for shots like this time and time again.
33:05 Allowed the shorter-armed fighter to get close.
33:07 And when shorter-armed fighters get close, they often land.
33:10 And that's what Perez did.
33:12 Both fighters closed the show very, very strong in that last round.
33:16 I want to see who walks away with this win.
33:19 - There you see a look at the cut above the eye of Perez,
33:26 which maybe had Norman Jr. stepping on the gas a little bit more
33:30 in that eighth and final round.
33:31 Something that probably since round four his father was pleading for him to do in the corner.
33:37 I wouldn't say that he executed everything on his game plan,
33:40 but if you talk about being patient and slowing the pace down,
33:42 okay, he definitely did that.
33:44 - Yeah, it's not the end of the road for Norman.
33:46 He's just got to learn from this.
33:47 I don't know if it was the training.
33:48 I don't know if it was something mental.
33:49 He's got to learn from this and get better the next time out.
33:52 - All right, both fighters are in the center of the ring.
33:55 Mark Chinook is taking his place now.
33:57 He has the decision.
33:58 We'll go up to Mark now with the decision.
34:01 - Ladies and gentlemen, after eight rounds here inside the Stockton Arena,
34:05 we go to the judges' scorecards for the official decision.
34:08 Tom Carasone and Zachary Young both have the value 77-75.
34:13 Robert Hoyle scores it 78-74.
34:16 All in favor of your winner by unanimous decision,
34:20 Brian "The Assassin 2" Norman!
34:24 - Brian Norman Jr.
34:27 - And Brian Norman Jr., your winner by unanimous decision,
34:31 improves his record now to 24-0 with 19 KOs.
34:37 Congratulations to him and his father, but you know, Dre,
34:39 they'll be back looking at this tape and looking to improve.