Arnaoutis Erases Tyner’s “0” By Cliff Rold (May 10, 2008) Send this page to friend Give us your feedback It was a must-win scenario for 28-year old Atlantic City resident Mike Arnaoutis (19-2-2, 9 KO) of Greece in front of the hometown fans on Friday. Arnaoutis did just that, outpointing 32-year old undefeated Lanardo Tyner (19-1, 11 KO) of Detroit, Michigan, over twelve energetic rounds at the at Bally's Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It’s not a win that erases Arnaoutis’s two tough recent losses to top-ten Jr. Welterweights Kendal Holt and WBO titlist Ricardo Torres, but it was a step in the right direction. Tyner came out aggressive at the opening bell, bull rushing Arnaoutis into the ropes and landing a right hand. Arnaoutis rode the ropes before taking the fight to center ring where he could work his southpaw right jab. The battle for geography continued throughout the first, Tyner lunging with lead rights and left jabs and Arnaoutis seeking to find his range. Both men let the leather fly to start the second. Tyner again rushed in, eating a right hook and left hand that seemed to shake him before steadying to trade flurries with his more experienced foe. A big left hook two minutes in forced Arnaoutis to cover up, pulling his guard high and tight to deflect Tyner’s offense before responding with some short, sharp shots off the ropes. He again took the action back to center ring, using his jab to control the offensive rushes of Tyner. Arnaoutis came out with a hard right jab to start the third. A tapping lead right from Tyner was met by a hard left uppercut from Arnaoutis about a minute in and Arnaoutis scored with a hard right to the body moments later. The final thirty seconds saw each man have their moments, Arnaoutis scoring with a hard lead right hook and Tyner hammering home a left-right-left in the corner at the bell. Moving to his right, Arnaoutis pawed with his jab to start the fourth. The jab became firmer as the seconds ticked by, opening Tyner up for straight snapping lefts. The pace was relatively slow until the thirty second mark again approached. Seemingly knowing he needed more effort to make a case for the frame, Tyner let loose with flush lefts and rights in combination, forcing Arnaoutis to step back and attempt to counter. Thinking he’d been fouled, Tyner turned his back on Arnaoutis early in the fifth. The Greek warrior gave chase, but Tyner averted disaster by spinning to face his man before being caught with a blind shot. Tyner was face-first for the bulk of the round, even taunting Arnaoutis at mid-ring, and “Mighty” Mike responded with some hard rights to the head and body. A lead right early in the sixth sent sweat flying from the head of Arnaoutis but he soon had the distance controlled. At the halfway point, a straight right-left from Arnaoutis connected and was followed by an even harder variation of Boxing’s most basic combination. The frenzied offense of the first five rounds failed to emerge for Tyner in the sixth as he rested too comfortably at the end of Arnaoutis jab down the stretch. It was the hard left hand that maintained the advantage for Arnaoutis in the seventh. Early on he landed downstairs, then up, and the momentum built from there. Methodically, he walked his man down, snowballing towards an avalanche of punches in the final minute that looked to have Tyner in deep trouble. In the closing seconds, Tyner dug deep and let his hands go against an arm weary Arnaoutis who covered up towards the ropes as Tyner came forward. Round eight went slowly until a hard right from Tyner brought a nasty combination response from Arnaoutis. A contest of jabs ensued, each man catching their breath as the championship rounds drew near, though Tyner did end the round with a nice three-punch salvo. A hard left hand upstairs began Arnaoutis’s efforts in the ninth and another, south of the border, brought a temporary halt to the action at the two minute mark. Returning to live fire, Tyner continued to land the lead right that had reddened Arnaoutis’s left eye, outpunching the local favorite for his best round since the fourth. Arnaoutis let his right jab reign in the tenth to great effect. Doubling and tripling the shot, Arnaoutis rendered Tyner impotent for all three minutes, mixing in effective lateral movement and tossing in the occasional combination to secure his dominance against a foe throwing next to nothing in response. With two rounds to go, Tyner’s never having been twelve rounds as a professional was apparent. Continuing to jab and flurry, Arnaoutis was still firing with snap and confidence. Tyner could offer only the occasional fatigued arm punch, his mouth wide in search of air. Tyner stepped to center ring for the obligatory glove tap at the start of the twelfth with a bit of trash talk. Arnaoutis spoke with his fists via hard left hand seconds later. Tyner would respond rarely with his own fists as the bout winded down, Arnaoutis clearly having carried the final three rounds by wide margins. The judges cards confirmed the obvious, awarding Arnaoutis the victory by scores of 118-110 (2X) and 116-112. Arnaoutis is currently unrated by any of the major sanctioning bodies at 140 lbs. but will certainly hope for a change in fortune off of this win. Both men weighed in for the bout just below the division limit at 139 ¼ lbs. The televised opener was, in real terms, probably less valuable than quality sparring. In aesthetic terms, a needed success for Heavyweight prospect 26-year old Devin Vargas (16-0, 7 KO) of Toledo, Ohio, as he posted a highlight reel 1st round knockout of the outclassed Dave Brunelli (8-4, 3 KO) of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 2004 U.S. Olympian Vargas, 226, has experienced a stuttering career path thus far, but there was no stutter in his overhand right or left hook on this night. From the opening bell, Vargas came forward aggressively against a willing Brunelli, 231 1/4. An overhand right just over a minute in hurtled Brunelli towards the deck but the journeyman rose well within the ten-count of the referee. Vargas immediately pounced, catching Brunelli with a sizzling left hook and follow-up flurry before another devastating right at sent Brunelli towards the deck. The referee took no time in leaping in to stop the bout at the official mark of 1:30. Other Televised Results Middleweights: Patrick Majewski (8-0, 5 KO) W UD4 Ariel Espinal (6-3-2, 2 KO) Welterweights: Raymond Serrano (6-0, 4 KO) W KO1 Charles Wade (4-4, 1 KO) The card was televised live on ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights and promoted by Star Boxing. Cliff Rold is a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Advisory Panel and the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com. Today's Boxing Press Discuss this Topic - Go to the forums