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Franco and Moloney Complete Trilogy

Moloney Out for Blood Following Questionable Decision

For the third straight time, Joshua Franco meets Andrew Moloney Saturday to decide the super flyweight champion. Franco opened as a slight underdog, but the boxing odds have shifted heavily in favor of Moloney.

Franco (17-1-2, 1 NC, 8 KOs) narrowly won the first meeting despite being a 6-1 underdog. Moloney (21-1-0, 1 NC, 14 KOs) was unbeaten at the time and appeared headed toward becoming the division’s undisputable king.

Pakistan's Muhammad Waseem fights Australia's Andrew Moloney during the men's fly final boxing
AFP PHOTO/ADRIAN DENNIS

The second bout was controversially ruled a “no contest. Moloney was dominating at the time of the stoppage and this time, he’ll look to ensure he walks away with the title.

  • Date: Saturday, Aug. 14, 10 p.m. ET
  • Venue: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Tulsa, OK, USA
  • Watch on: ESPN

What’s at Stake?

Weight Class: Super flyweight (115 lbs)

Rounds: 12

As far as boxing robberies are concerned, Moloney was skewered in the last bout. The Australian appeared to be on his way to recapturing his WBA super flyweight belt by piecing up Franco, who had no answers to his onslaught.

In fact, Moloney was this close to finishing Franco as he had shut his left eye with a punch. But that wasn’t what referee Russell Mora concluded. After the doctor stopped the fight, Mora declared it a “no decision” due to an “accidental headbutt.”

Moloney and his camp were justifiably irate about the decision and appealed the ruling to no avail. Instead, he gets a third crack at Moloney where the public has bet online heavily on him to finish the job.

The First Bout: Franco Pulls Off A Huge Upset

Moloney was a massive favorite entering the first match against Franco as he was unbeaten and relatively unscathed. The fight turned out to be his toughest as Moloney and Franco went back and forth.

In the 11th round, Franco knocked Moloney down, which turned out to be a decisive factor. Two judges scored the fight 114-113 with the third scoring it 115-112 for Franco. Had Franco not scored the knockdown, the fight would have been a majority draw.

Still, Franco did better statistically. He landed 231 of his 789 punches (29.3%) versus Moloney’s 191 of 663 (28.8%).

The Rematch: Moloney Left Hanging

As mentioned, the second bout was a travesty. Moloney entered the bout as the underdog but quickly went to work and won the first two rounds easily. However, the referee declared the bout a no-contest having made a grievous error.

It was clear that Moloney shut Franco’s eye with a legitimate shot. If the doctor had not stopped the fight, Franco was compromised and Moloney would have taken over and whipped his butt to reclaim his title.

But in Moloney’s and the fans’ eyes, he won the rematch. So we head to the third bout all tied up at one apiece.

The Trilogy: Who Has the Edge?

Moloney will be the betting favorite for this trilogy fight following his strong showing in the rematch in November last year. However, it was still just a small sample size. Had Franco not had his eye shut, he may have made that fight more competitive.

Moloney did take it to Franco and was visibly the faster and hungrier fighter. Franco is durable and will have the advantage in punching power here. But he is outgunned and Moloney appears to also have improved significantly since losing the title.

It won’t be a blowout for Moloney as Franco will mount more of an attack this time. But like fellow Aussie Tim Tszyu, who just sparked Steve Spark, look for Moloney to control this bout and outbox Franco en route to a clear-cut decision.

Pick: Andrew Moloney

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