Harris retains IBA belt
Stabroek News
July 18, 2002
It didn't take Vivian Harris long to realize he was not likely to thrill fans with a knockout Tuesday night at Memorial Civic Center. So Harris simply settled in for the long haul, and went about grinding out a victory in the first defense of his IBA Junior Welterweight title belt. Harris won a unanimous decision over Ubaldo Hernandez in the 12-round championship fight, the co-feature in a six-bout card for the ESPN2 Tuesday Night Fights.
The crowd of 2,500 found little to get excited about during the victory by Harris. "It didn't affect me," Harris said. "I was just trying to get the win." Harris, 24, improved to 21-1-1 by winning the fight 118-109 on all three judges' scorecards. Harris made sure not to force it against Hernandez, a Mexico City native who falls to 18-9-2. "He's a slow fighter," Harris said. "I tried to pick it up. But the way he fights - he's a counter puncher - I didn't want to give him a mistake." The 5-foot-4 Harris, who weighed in at 140 pounds (same as Hernandez), also said he was a bit nervous in his first title defense. "There was so much at stake," Harris said. "I thought about what's next. If I lose this fight, I lose a chance at something bigger. This is all experience that will help me a lot later." And it's not like Harris has not been in a more serious situations before. Born in Guyana, he now lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., where in September 2000 he survived being stabbed in a mugging at a store. The mugger was trying to take a bracelet from Harris.
"I'm from Brooklyn, and I ain't giving up a bracelet like that," he said. And he wasn't going to give up his title belt, either.
"Maybe if he attacked me more, I'd have gotten off more punches and the fight would've been more exciting," he said. "But I just wanted the win." No one walked away with the win in the fight that preceded the Harris victory. Kelli Cofer of Willard and Mary Ortega of Kansas City, Mo., fought to a draw after their four-round super featherweight bout. "Anyone who saw that fight knew I had won," said Cofer (8-0-1). "Anyone who understands the politics of boxing understands what happened. "If she hit me, it wasn't until the fourth round. That was the only round I thought she won."
Of course, Ortega (18-1-1) had a different view. "I think it was an awesome fight," she said. "I did very well. I think I won many of the rounds. I don't mean this in any way to disrespect Kelli Cofer, but I think I won the fight." (Fightnews.com)