Max: Final rounds of Freitas-Barrios very telling
By Max Kellerman
Special to ESPN.com
Acelino Freitas' 12th-round knockout of Argentinian contender Jorge Barrios last Saturday night was a good action fight with a sensational ending. A certain boxing observer who shall here remain nameless (Brian Kenny) went so far as to call it 2003's Fight of the Year.
While Freitas-Barrios was no James Toney-Vassily Jirov or Arturo Gatti-Micky Ward III, its final two rounds were perhaps as dramatic an ending as any this year.
After an even, back and forth, somewhat awkward brawl over the first 10 rounds, Barrios floored Ring Magazine's top rated 130-pounder in the 11th with a right hand. Brazil's only boxing superstar rose on unsteady legs, but since his mouthpiece was knocked out by the punch that sent him down, he was given extra time to recover as the referee would not let the action continue until the mouthpiece was rinsed and put back in.