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Rising Philly
lightweight Steven Ortiz scored an impressive second round
TKO of DC prospect Joshua Davis in the main event at the
Sugar House Casino Friday night. Ortiz, 8-0, 3 KOs, jumped
out to a fast start, and Davis, 11-3, 5 KOs, could not keep
pace. By the second round, Ortiz was in high gear and went
in for the kill.
A left hook by Ortiz
dropped Davis for the first time. He got to his feet, but
Ortiz was ready and waiting. Steven pounded away until a
sharp right hand put Davis down again. The visitor survived,
but when the action resumed, Ortiz blasted him with another
right than sent him to the canvas for a third and final
time.
The moment he hit
the mat, referee Gary Rosato waved the fight over, giving
Ortiz the best win of his career thus far. The time of the
stoppage was 2:21 of the second round.
With Davis’ slightly
more experienced record, and a 2017 TKO win over Carlos
Rosario to his credit, the DC native came in the favorite on
this night. However, Ortiz, with his overwhelming
performance and upset victory, cleared the air on which of
these lightweights has the bigger future. The win was a real
showcase for Ortiz, now officially a hot Philly prospect.
And for his trouble, Ortiz picked up the WBF North American
Regional title belt.
ENNIS WINS 18TH STRAIGHT
In the co-feature bout scheduled for six rounds, solid-gold
Philly prospect Jaron Ennis, 18-0, 16 KOs, chopped away at
Mexican welterweight Gustavo Garibay, 13-10-2, 5 KOs, for
four rounds before finally stopping him at 2:14 of the
fourth.
There were no
knockdowns in the bout, but Ennis was in complete control
throughout the fight and the outcome was never in doubt.
There were a few unruly exchanges early on, but Ennis
handled things each time the Mexican pressed him.
Ennis smoothly
shifted back and forth from orthodox and southpaw stances
and raked Garibay from both sides. Under the Ennis’ constant
attack, Garibay began to waver in the fourth, and referee
Eric Dali stepped in to mercifully stop it.
KNIGHT STOPS
MORALES
In a brief welterweight contest, Philly’s Poindexter Knight,
2-0, 2 KOs, put down Jordan Morales of Sunbury, PA, 2-4, 2
KOs, twice and stopped him at 2:19 of the first round of a
scheduled 4-rounder. This was Philadelphian’s first bout at
home after debuting on the road. Knight used a left hook to
score the first knockdown and then a right hand to end the
fight.
KATENDE WINS BY
DECISION
In the only fight of the night to go the distance, NY
Cruiserweight Kennedy Katende, 3-0, 1 KO, battled six full
rounds with Lyubomyr Pinchuk, 4-1, 3 KOs, and won an
entertaining unanimous decision. Southpaw Katende, shorter
and slightly heavier, scored a knockdown with a left hand in
round one, but the lanky Pittsburgh-based Ukrainian battled
back to make it a very competitive fight. On my scorecard,
Katende won the first three rounds before Pinchuck rallied
to win the final three, although many of the rounds were
close. So, the first round knockdown by Katende was the
difference on my 57-56 card.
The official judges
had the fight a bit more comfortably for Katende. Anthony
Lundy scored it 58-55, while both Dave Braswell and Adam
Friscia had Katende winning 59-54.
ROBINSON ROUTS ZAPATA
Upper Darby super middleweight Brandon Robinson, 9-1, 7 KOs,
beat New Yorker Juan Zapata, 5-12-2, 3 KOs, by TKO in round
one. Heavy-handed Robinson chugged forward at the opening
bell looking for another knockout. It didn’t take long
before Robinson began to land telling shots. A little past
the midpoint of the round, Robinson unloaded a right hand
that crumbled Zapata in a neutral corner. As Zapata folded
to the floor, referee Gary Rosato stopped the fight. The
time was 1:50.
BERLANGA HALTS BARBOZA
New York middleweight Edgar Berlanga, 7-0, 7 KOs, made quick
work of Jaime Barboza, of Costa Rica, 19-14, 9 KOs, dropping
him twice in the first round, first with a right uppercut
and then with a left hook-right hand combo, and stopping him
after just 2:42. Eric Dali was the referee.
BOCACHICA TKOS GAYTAN
In the show opener, scheduled six rounds, Detroit
welterweight Janelson Bocachica, 9-0, 6 KOs, stopped Mexican
Victor Gaytan, 2-4, 1 KO, with a mighty right hand early in
round five. Earlier, Bocachica dropped his foe in the
second, but Gaytan survived. However, another rocket caught
him three rounds later, and referee Gary Rosato halted the
fight as soon as Gaytan hit the floor. The time was 13
seconds of round five.
Evander Holyfield’s Real Deal Sports and Entertainment
promoted the sell-out show. The former four-time heavyweight
champion was in attendance and came to center ring along
with former opponents Larry Holmes, Bert Cooper, Lionel
Byarm, and past stars Michael Spinks, Buster Drayton, Jacqui
Frazier-Lyde, and Kevin Howard. |
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