Blair Cobbs
Blair Cobbs | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 30, 1989 |
| Other names | The Flair[3] |
| Statistics | |
| Weight(s) | Welterweight |
| Height | 5 ft 11+1⁄2 in (182 cm)[1] |
| Stance | Southpaw |
| Boxing record[2] | |
| Total fights | 18 |
| Wins | 16 |
| Wins by KO | 10 |
| Losses | 1 |
| Draws | 1 |
Blair Romero Cobbs (born December 30, 1989[3]) is an American professional boxer who has held the WBC-NABF welterweight title since 2019.
Early life[edit]
Blair Romero Cobbs was born on December 30, 1989, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He moved with his mother from city to city until his mother died when he was eleven years old, at which time he moved in with his grandmother. Following his grandmother's death he lived with his father,[4] Eugene Cobbs, eventually relocating to Guadalajara, Mexico, after his father became a fugitive from the FBI. It was in Guadalajara where Cobbs found boxing.[5]
Professional career[edit]
Cobbs made his professional debut on June 28, 2013, scoring a first-round knockout (KO) victory over Martique Holland at Lera's Baile Mexicano in Ruffin, North Carolina.[6]
After compiling a record of 9–0–1 (6 KOs) he faced Ferdinand Kerobyan for the vacant WBC-NABF Junior welterweight title on March 21, 2019, at The Avalon in Los Angeles, California. Kerobyan suffered a cut in the first round from an accidental clash of heads, which Cobbs targeted with sharp jabs. With Cobbs' hand speed being the decisive factor, he went on to win by unanimous decision (UD) to capture his first professional title. One judge scored the bout 79–73 and the other two scored it 77–75.[7]
After a sixth-round knockout (KO) victory against Robert Redmond Jr. in a non-title bout in June,[8] Cobbs made the first defence of his title against Steve Villalobos on August 22 at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California. After an even back-and-forth fight for the first five rounds, Cobbs suffered the first knockdown of his career in the sixth after being stunned by a right followed by a flurry of punches to send him to the canvas. After taking control in rounds seven and eight, Cobbs ended the fight in the ninth after landing a series of uppercuts followed by a right hand to send Villalobos stumbling into the ropes and onto the canvas, giving Cobbs the KO win.[9]
His next fight came against Carlos Cervantes for the vacant WBC-NABF welterweight title on November 2, 2019, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Paradise, Nevada. The bout served as part of the undercard for Canelo Álvarez vs. Sergey Kovalev. After suffering a knockdown in the first round – a punch from Villalobos grazed the back of Cobbs' head, causing him to stumble and touch the canvas with his left hand and knee – Cobbs scored a knockdown of his own in the sixth with a counter left hook. Cervantes made it to his feet to see out the remainder of the round, only for his corner to pull him out of the contest before the start of the seventh, handing Cobbs a stoppage win via seventh-round corner retirement (RTD).[citation needed]
The first defense of his newly acquired title came on February 14, 2020, against Samuel Kotey Neequaye at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. In a fight which saw Cobbs stay behind the jab and box at range, he received a point deduction in round nine for punching below the belt en route to a split decision (SD) victory. Two judges scored the bout 96–93 in favour of Cobbs while the third scored it 95–94 to Neequaye.[10]
Professional boxing record[edit]
| 18 fights | 16 wins | 1 loss |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 10 | 1 |
| By decision | 6 | 0 |
| Draws | 1 | |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Win | 16–1–1 | Maurice Hooker | UD | 10 | Aug 6, 2022 | Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. | |
| 17 | Loss | 15–1–1 | Alexis Rocha | KO | 9 (10), 0:44 | Mar 19, 2022 | Galen Center, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| 16 | Win | 15–0–1 | Brad Solomon | TKO | 5 (10), 2:57 | Jun 19, 2021 | Don Haskins Center, El Paso, Texas, U.S. | |
| 15 | Win | 14–0–1 | Samuel Kotey Neequaye | SD | 10 | Feb 14, 2020 | Honda Center, Anaheim, California, U.S. | Retained WBC-NABF welterweight title |
| 14 | Win | 13–0–1 | Carlos Ortiz | RTD | 6 (10), 3:00 | Nov 2, 2019 | MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. | Won vacant WBC-NABF welterweight title |
| 13 | Win | 12–0–1 | Steve Villalobos | KO | 9 (10), 1:20 | Aug 22, 2019 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. | Retained WBC-NABF Junior welterweight title |
| 12 | Win | 11–0–1 | Robert Redmond Jr. | KO | 6 (8), 1:52 | Jun 21, 2019 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. | |
| 11 | Win | 10–0–1 | Ferdinand Kerobyan | UD | 8 | Mar 21, 2019 | The Avalon, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Won vacant WBC-NABF Junior welterweight title |
| 10 | Win | 9–0–1 | Emmanuel Valadez | TKO | 2 (6), 1:52 | Jul 21, 2018 | Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. | |
| 9 | Win | 8–0–1 | Juan Rivera | UD | 4 | Jul 6, 2018 | Belasco Theater, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| 8 | Draw | 7–0–1 | Mario Esparza | TD | 4 (4), 0:19 | Mar 16, 2018 | Belasco Theater, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Fight stopped after Esparza was cut from accidental head clash |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Hugo Padilla | UD | 6 | Oct 14, 2017 | Auditorio Miguel Ángel Barbarena Vega, Jesús María, Mexico | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Allan Moore | KO | 2 (4), 0:54 | Jun 24, 2017 | Fitz Casino, Southaven, Mississippi, U.S. | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Alejandro Martinez | TKO | 2 (4), 1:45 | May 18, 2017 | Escape Bar, Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Julio Sanchez | UD | 4 | Nov 25, 2014 | 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Tevin Reynolds | TKO | 3 (4), 3:00 | Nov 1, 2013 | Lera's Baile Mexicano, Ruffin, North Carolina, U.S. | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Tyshae Ferguson | TKO | 1 (4), 2:35 | Oct 12, 2013 | The Electric Factory, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Martique Holland | KO | 1 (4), 0:34 | Jun 28, 2013 | Lera's Baile Mexicano, Ruffin, North Carolina, U.S. |
References[edit]
- ^ DAZN Tale of the Tape from Cobbs vs. Villalobos
- ^ "Boxing record for Blair Cobbs". BoxRec.
- ^ a b "Prince Ranch Boxing – About". Prince Ranch Boxing. Retrieved July 5, 2022.
- ^ "Blair Cobbs". Golden Boy Promotions. Archived from the original on July 4, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
- ^ L. John, Andrew (August 22, 2019). "As a kid, his family hid from the FBI in Mexico; how'd he stay sane? Blair Cobbs learned to box". Desert Sun. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
- ^ "BoxRec: Blair Cobbs vs. Martique Holland". boxrec.com. Archived from the original on July 3, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
- ^ Serrano, Mario (March 22, 2019). "RESULTS: Blair Cobbs Defeats Ferdinand Kerobyan". Boxing News. Archived from the original on July 4, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
- ^ "Andrew Cancio Repeats Upset Victory over Puerto Rico's Alberto Machado". The Sweet Science. June 22, 2019. Archived from the original on June 23, 2019. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
- ^ Donovan, Jake (August 22, 2019). "Blair Cobbs Gets Off The Floor To Stop Steve Villalobos in Ninth". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
- ^ Baca II, Michael (February 14, 2020). "Blair Cobbs edges Samuel Kotey by split decision on Garcia-Fonseca undercard". The Ring. Archived from the original on July 4, 2020. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
External links[edit]
- BBC podcast Lives Less Ordinary 13 February 2023 part 1: 40 minutes
- Boxing record for Blair Cobbs from BoxRec (registration required)