By: Sean Crose
Sulem Urbina had been hoping to make a good impression in her first New York fight on Tuesday. The Phoenix based fighter – by way of Mexico – was one of the top attractions of Boxing Insider’s Holiday Fight Night card at Sony Hall in Time’s Square. The 13-2-1 Urbina’s opponent in a scheduled eight round bantamweight affair was the 5-6 Indeya Smith. Indeed, it was Smith who came out aggressively in the first while Urbina fought behind the jab and employed solid footwork.
Smith continued to press the action in the second while Urbina worked to position herself for effective shots. The third was an exciting affair with Smith throwing and landing well while Urbina stalked her smaller, faster opponent. Urbina bled from a cut in a close fourth round (it was subsequently announced that the cut had come from a head butt).
Smith was the considerably more active of the two fighters in the fifth, pressing the action and landing well while Urbina seemed to have difficulty making anything happen. Urbina went down from a slip in the sixth, a round she had been performing better in. Both fighters traded punches ferociously at the start of the seventh. Smith went on to perform impressively with short, telling shots – though Urbina had her moments, as well.
The eighth and final round saw Smith continue to keep up her furious pace while Urbina fired straight shots from behind the jab. Smith’s speed and energy continued to be a challenge for Urbina, as it had been for the entirety of the fight. The judges ultimately ruled in favor of Smith by scores of 77-75, and 79-73 twice.