Blair Cobbs Explained

Blair Cobbs
Nickname:The Flair
Weight:Welterweight
Height:5 ft 11+1/2 in[1]
Birth Date:30 December 1989
Birth Place:Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Style:Southpaw
Boxrec:649727
Total:19
Wins:17
Ko:10
Losses:1
Draws:1

Blair Romero Cobbs (born December 30, 1989[2]) is an American professional boxer who has held the WBC-NABF welterweight title since 2019.

Early life

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,[3] Eugene Cobbs, eventually relocating to Guadalajara, Mexico, after his father became a fugitive from the FBI. It was in Guadalajara where Cobbs found boxing.[4]

Professional career

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.[5]

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.[6]

After a sixth-round knockout (KO) victory against Robert Redmond Jr. in a non-title bout in June,[7] 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.[8]

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).

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.[9]

Professional boxing record

ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
18Win17–1–1Adrien BronerUD10Jun 7, 2024
17Win16–1–1Maurice HookerUD10Aug 6, 2022
17Loss15–1–1Alexis RochaKO9 (10), Mar 19, 2022
16Win15–0–1Brad SolomonTKO5 (10), Jun 19, 2021
15Win14–0–1Samuel Kotey Neequaye10Feb 14, 2020
14Win13–0–1Carlos Ortiz 6 (10), Nov 2, 2019
13Win12–0–1Steve VillalobosKO9 (10), Aug 22, 2019
12Win11–0–1Robert Redmond Jr.KO6 (8), Jun 21, 2019
11Win10–0–1Ferdinand KerobyanUD8Mar 21, 2019
10Win9–0–1Emmanuel ValadezTKO2 (6), Jul 21, 2018
9Win8–0–1Juan RiveraUD4Jul 6, 2018
8Draw7–0–1Mario Esparza4 (4), Mar 16, 2018
7Win7–0Hugo PadillaUD6Oct 14, 2017
6Win6–0Allan MooreKO2 (4), Jun 24, 2017
5Win5–0Alejandro MartinezTKO2 (4), May 18, 2017
4Win4–0Julio Sanchez4Nov 25, 2014
3Win3–0Tevin ReynoldsTKO3 (4), Nov 1, 2013
2Win2–0Tyshae Ferguson1 (4), Oct 12, 2013
1Win1–0Martique Holland1 (4), Jun 28, 2013

External links

Notes and References

  1. [DAZN]
  2. Web site: Prince Ranch Boxing – About . July 5, 2022 . Prince Ranch Boxing .
  3. Web site: Blair Cobbs. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200704142057/https://www.goldenboypromotions.com/fighter_profiles/blair-cobbs/ . July 4, 2020 . July 4, 2020. Golden Boy Promotions. en-US.
  4. Web site: 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.. July 4, 2020. Desert Sun.
  5. Web site: BoxRec: Blair Cobbs vs. Martique Holland. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200703165702/https://boxrec.com/en/event/676037/1819425 . July 3, 2020 . July 3, 2020. boxrec.com.
  6. Web site: Serrano. Mario. March 22, 2019. RESULTS: Blair Cobbs Defeats Ferdinand Kerobyan. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200704040652/https://www.boxing247.com/press-boxing/results-blair-cobbs-defeats-ferdinand-kerobyan/113763 . July 4, 2020 . July 4, 2020. Boxing News. en-US.
  7. Web site: June 22, 2019. Andrew Cancio Repeats Upset Victory over Puerto Rico's Alberto Machado. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20190623125338/http://tss.ib.tv/boxing/featured-boxing-articles-boxing-news-videos-rankings-and-results/58433-andrew-cancio-repeats-upset-victory-over-puerto-ricos-alberto-machado . June 23, 2019 . July 4, 2020. The Sweet Science. en-US.
  8. Web site: Donovan. Jake. August 22, 2019. Blair Cobbs Gets Off The Floor To Stop Steve Villalobos in Ninth. July 4, 2020. BoxingScene.com. en-us.
  9. Web site: Baca II. Michael. February 14, 2020. Blair Cobbs edges Samuel Kotey by split decision on Garcia-Fonseca undercard. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200704135834/https://www.ringtv.com/591768-blair-cobbs-edges-samuel-kotey-by-split-decision-on-garcia-fonseca-undercard/ . July 4, 2020 . July 4, 2020. The Ring.