Abdullah Mason (16-0, 14 KOs) had to overcome adversity last Friday night, suffering two first-round knockdowns before coming back to knock out the power puncher Yohan Vasquez (26-6, 21 KOs) in the second round last Friday night at the Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia.
(Credit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank)
Mason, 20, stopped the injured Vasquez with a left to the body in round two, bailing himself out of a difficult situation to get the knockout at the 1:59 mark. Vasquez suffered a right leg injury after being hurt by a straight left from Mason early in round two, and he was defenseless at the point.
After the fight, Mason admitted that he’d made a mistake by taking the fight to the inside so early against the hard-hitting 30-year-old Dominican Republic-born Vasquez. In hindsight, Mason feels that he should have boxed initially before going to the inside to make it a war against a huge puncher fighter.
Abdullah Mason Came Back
In the first knockdown, Mason attempted to throw an uppercut on the inside and was nailed by a short left hook from Vasquez. After that, Mason came back to put Vasquez down a thunderous left uppercut in the first round.
Mason was like a shark smelling blood in the water, attacking Vasquez without caution. In the final seconds of round one, Vasquez once again dropped Mason with a left hook. He wasn’t hurt when he got back up but had a look of surprise on his face as if to say, ‘How did I get caught again?’
“That’s what we’re in it for – to make boxing exciting. It was fun. I showed that I was human, but I came back,” said Abdullah Mason to Fighthype, discussing his need to get off the deck twice from first-round knockdowns to rally to score a second-round knockout of Yohan Vasquez last Friday night in Norfolk, Virginia.
“Flash; it was a flash knockdown,” said Abdullah about being dropped by a left hook twice by Vasquez in round one. “It was a great fight, but I’m here, and we’re on to the next. I got to go back and rewatch it step by step to remember all the moments.
Mason Wants Title Shot In 2025
“We want everybody,” said Mason about wanting all the champions at lightweight in 2025 that he’ll be targeting for a title shot.”
Top Rank will decide whether to push Mason for a world title shot in 2025, as they may choose to continue to develop him after the problems he had against the non-contender Vasquez. For Mason to have a chance against any of the world champions, he would need to avoid making the same careless mistakes that led to his two knockdowns.
Assuming Mason does fight for a world title next year, a match against WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson, WBO champ Denys Berinchyk or whoever holds the IBF belt would be good options.
“As soon as I watched it back, I said, ‘Oh no,’ but this turned me into a new fighter,” said Mason to Fighthype about his belief that he’ll improve from his performance. “I would say that I stepped on the inside a little early. Him being a power puncher, I knew I was going to go in there to box him, but I stepped on the inside a little early.”
Areas of Improvement for Abdullah Mason
– Staying outside
– Using height and reach
– Softening up Opponents first
– Avoid early shootouts
Against a powerful fighter like Vasquez, Mason should have stayed on the outside and bombed him from long range rather than getting in close where his opponent could hit him with his hard left hooks.
“I deviated from the plan and everything my father tells me; I saw it close up this time instead of learning from somebody else’s mistakes.
