Chilemba walked to the ring to the nostalgic chords of Lukas Graham’s “7 Years” while Perez, a 28 year old Cuban who splits time between Russia and France, strode to the squared circle to “Nueva Era,” an energetic song by Duki and Myke Towers. Their choice of music proved apt for their distinct purpose in the fight.
Chilemba showed flashed of his former greatness. A defensive wizard, he ducked, slipped, and blocked most of Perez’s shots. But the younger man kept up a constant assault. He pumped his long jab to set up stinging straight rights throughout the fight. Perez’s offense was an effortless poem while Chilemba’s resembled a quadratic equation. He concocted elaborate combinations in order to land one shot, usually a left hook.
Though Chilemba evaded, blocked, or rolled with many of Perez’s shots, enough of them landed to swell up the eyes of the wizened veteran. Isaac’s best moments were to start the third and the tenth rounds, but even in those valiant attempts, he was unable to capture the rounds. He gave Perez a spanking in the seventh, albeit in the literal sense. While in a clinch, he gave the younger man a pat on the behind.
Chilemba presented a tough puzzle for Perez, but he was unable to expose the taller Cuban’s main flaw, an amateurish habit of producing an open-mouthed shot when ever he threw a power shot. Isaac tried to land left hooks, but could never time it while Perez’s mouth remained agape. Yet, he lasted the ten rounds after fighting fewer the two since 2022.
The three judges scored the bout 100-90 in favor of Perez. The Jewish Boxing Blog concurs. Chilemba is now 27-11-3 with 11 KOs. Perez improves to 16-0 with 14 KOs.