Inside the Ringside with Frank Bartolini - Hulu Theater at MSG

By Frank Bartolini

Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, New York City:  Matchroom Boxing delivered another superb night of boxing to New York. On top of the card, popular super middleweight contender Edgar Berlanga, Brooklyn, NY, faced Jason Quigley, Ireland. Berlanga garnered an undefeated record as part of Top Rank’s stable. Earlier this year, Top Rank and Berlanga parted ways. Both Golden Boy and PBC showed interest in signing Berlanga, but he chose Eddie Hearn. 

Irishman Jason Quigley, 167.5 lbs., was brought in as the opponent to showcase Berlanga's,167.75 lbs., skills. A big draw in the Big Apple, Berlanga had a house full of cheering fans. 

Anxious to end a four-bout drought without scoring a knockout, Berlanga went straight to work from the opening bell. In round three, Quigley hit the deck after absorbing a Berlanga right to the side of the head. During the fifth stanza, Berlanga scored a questionable knockdown after hurting Quigley with a left hook to the chin. To his credit, Quigley kept himself in the fight with some slick boxing while getting in his licks when he had his chances. As the clock ran out in the final heat, Berlanga got through with a left hook followed by a straight right to his foe’s cranium that resulted in Quigley eating rosin dust. Going for the kill, Berlanga dropped Quigley again with a barrage of punches.

The sold-out crowd roared in approval with the decision when ring Announcer Dave Diamante read the scores 116-108 twice and 118-106, all for Berlanga who’s record is now 21-0, 16 KOs. Quigley gave an admirable effort as his record dips to 20-3, 14 KOs. 

A former junior middleweight champ Jamie Munguia and future Hall of Famer Gennady Golovkin are a couple of names that have come up as potential future adversaries for Berlanga. After scoring sixteen first round knockouts in first sixteen fights as a professional, Berlanga has become a "bombs away" headhunter at times, shots that negate his body attacks. During his streak of kayoes, Berlanga's mid-section assault was a precursor to him tagging his opponents with crushing shots to the head. Berlanga will have to revisit those techniques if he is going to compete against the elite of the super middleweight ranks. 

Bombs away! Nothing better than watching two heavyweights with limited defensive ability take turns clocking one another. Thirteen-year veteran heavyweight Joe Cusumano, Danville, VA, scored the biggest win of an up until now ordinary career. Sadly, Cusumano crushed the hopes of one-time heavyweight contender Adam Kownacki, Brooklyn, NY, resurrecting his livelihood. A Cusumano, 238.25 lbs., right to Kownacki’s face dropped the Polish hammer in round one. Kownacki, 251.75 lbs., found his way back to his corner and continued his losing struggle until he was brutally finished at the two-minute mark of round eight. With the win, a big payday awaits Cusumano, 22-4 20 KOs. Falling to 20-4, 15 KOs, Kownacki has lost his last four fights, three of those by ugly knockouts. Popular consensus agrees Kownacki should never again step foot in a boxing ring.

Inside the Ringside with Frank Bartolini

By Frank Bartolini

As I traverse north on the New York Thruway to this year's International Boxing Hall of Fame inductions, the Hudson River runs alongside me moving in the opposite direction passing by New York City before dumping into the Atlantic Ocean. My mind began thinking about the great island of Manhattan. 

Who is Larry Goldberg? 

Larry is a Ventnor New Jersey native. During Atlantic City’s pugilism heyday Goldberg fell in love with the sport of boxing in grade school while attending fights at various casinos. By the time Goldberg graduated Atlantic City High School in 1996, Larry had been ringside to witness all-time greats Larry Holmes, Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones, Mike Tyson and the list goes on and on. 

Attending Hofstra University turned Larry into a New Yorker, and these days he calls Manhattan home. In 1998, during the early days of boxing websites when most fans were still receiving their timely reports from Boxing Flash and Boxing Update, Goldberg launched boxinginsider.com. Boxinginsider.com immediately became, and still is, one of the most popular boxing websites on the internet. 

In October 2022, Larry delved into promoting professional boxing club shows at the Sony Hall in Times Square NYC. Since then, Goldberg’s promotional company, Boxing Insider Promotions, has promoted an additional three more shows at the venue and each one is better than the last. Helping guide Larry is IBHOF inductee Lou DiBella and seasoned matchmaker Eric Bottjer. 

All of the Boxing Insider shows are scheduled on Thursday nights. Most recently on April 27th, Goldberg took a big step forward when DAZN aired this show globally on their streaming network. 

Boxing Insider Promotions returns to Sony Hall in Times square on June 29th. Sizzling hot prospect junior welterweight Kurt Scoby will face Philadelphian, and former world title challenger, Hank Lundy in a scheduled eight round main event. Back in February, Scoby stole the show on a ShoBox fight card with a stunning second round knockout. 

Nearly a half a millennium ago, legend tells us our forefathers purchased Manhattan Island from Lenape Indians for a few shekels and a pouch of beads. In 1626 when this deal was consummated, the world was full of mystics. Not one soothsayer foresaw what this islet would manifest into by February 4, 2023, when a sold-out HULU theater hosted undisputed world featherweight queen Amanda Serrano, Brooklyn, NY, duking it out with gloves against Erika Cruz of Mexico. 

Determined to attend the Serrano vs Cruz weigh-in on Friday morning, I came into the Big Apple Thursday night and lodged at The New Yorker Hotel. Located across the street from Madison Square Garden on Eighth Ave., The New Yorker Hotel opened in 1930. Nikola Tesla boarded there on the thirty-third floor for the last fifteen years of his life. Upon entering the lobby through the revolving door, you will discover an art deco masterpiece that still maintains an aesthetic appeal.

An exuberant, smiling Alycia Baumgardner captured everyone's heart at the weigh-in on Friday. Baumgardner has never relented in her pursuit of greatness. When Alycia disrobed to mount the scale the "oohs" and "aahs" could be heard. No longer a young prospect with her hair in braids and braces on her teeth, Baumgardner posed with her sculpted figure, head full of beautiful curly hair, and gorgeous smile in a gold bikini. She appeared to be a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model rather than a prizefighter. 

I lodged at the UN Millenium Hilton Hotel, situated on the corner of First Ave and Forty Fourth street with a street address of One UN Plaza, on Friday and Saturday. After having a cocktail at the hotel bar, aptly named the Ambassador Grill and returning to my room, I took in a view of the East River. Frigid temperatures broke all time lows and mighty whirlwinds whisking through the cavernous streets and avenues created a sub zero wind chill. Cutting arctic sting chills did not interfere on whether or not I was going to walk a block and a half up Forty Fourth street to a favorite haunt of Manhattanites titled the Overlook Bar. A unique cast of patrons can always be found there, including newsies who are employed by the various networks in the area. Upon entering, I knew it was going to be an entertaining evening when two friends, the bouncer Mike and the proprietor Mark, were both on the job. Making it back to the sanctity of my hotel bed before sunrise was an achieved goal. 

Since landing on United States soil Matchroom Boxing USA has consistently delivered quality fight cards. All in attendance at the sold-out Hulu Theater would agree as they roared their approval for Amanda Serrano's unanimous ten round decision win over a hard fighting Cruz. 

Matchroom Boxing's next show at the Hulu Theater is on June 24th. Headlining the show is super middleweight Edgar Berlanga, who squares off against Jason Quigley of Ireland in a twelve rounder. Matchroom signed Berlanga soon after he and Top Rank parted ways. Another interesting scrap set for ten rounds; heavyweight Adam Kownacki will be trying to snap a three-fight losing streak when he faces Joe Cusumano in the semi wind up.

Sosa Impressive; Adan Gonzales Spoils Cuban Prospect Ramirez's Debut

By Matt Ward, Ringside

Top Rank professional boxing on ESPN+ returned to the Liacouras Center on the campus of Temple University in North Philadelphia on Saturday night. The main event of this action-packed card pitted super featherweights Jason Sosa (23-3-4, 16 KOs) and Lydell Rhodes (27-4-1, 13 KOs) against one another in a ten round contest. Sosa, a former WBA Super Featherweight World Champion, made a big step on the trail to reclaim a world title by stopping tough veteran Rhodes at the 1:08 mark of the seventh round.

The two gladiators fought a close fight through the opening two frames. In the third round, Sosa opened up on Rhodes with a barrage of effective punches to the head and body. This offensive onslaught was highlighted by hard upper cuts that made Rhodes cringe under the pressure. Sosa again went on the attack in the fourth round when he connected with a left hand to the face of Rhodes. Rhodes rallied at the end of the round, landing a multi-punch combo that let Sosa know he was still in the fight.

In the fifth round, Sosa sent Rhodes crashing to the canvas with a left hook to the head. Rhodes managed to pull himself up from the mat, and fight on until the final 30 seconds of the round when Rhodes was punished with a series of Sosa punches to the head that again sent him down to the canvas. An accidental headbutt in the sixth round opened up a cut near Sosa's left eye. Fortunately, the location of this wound had little impact on the Camden native's fight plan and momentum going forward.

The third and final knockdown came in the seventh round when a well-placed Sosa right hand to Rhodes' head sent him crashing to the canvas. Rhodes recovered from the knockdown, but his corner had seen enough of the beat down, and threw in the towel. Referee Benjy Esteves honored the request by waiving off the fight. 

Gonzales Spoils Olympian's Debut

Denver's Adan Gonzales (5-2-2, 2 KOs) spoiled the long anticipated professional debut of Cuban Olympian Robeisy Ramirez (0-1) in a four round featherweight bout. Gonzales, fighting like a man looking for the upset, introduced Ramirez to a pro boxing canvas in the first round with a hard right hand to the head. Ramirez appeared to struggle with Gonzales in the second round, as he continued to apply pressure to the highly successful former amateur fighter. Ramirez, hoping to salvage his night, unloaded on Gonzales at the end of the third round, having to be pulled off of Gonzales after the bell rang. Ramirez fought hard in the fourth and final round, but it was not enough to salvage a win or draw. The judges scored the bout 39-36 for Gonzales, 38-37 for Ramirez, and 40-35 for the winner by split decision, Adan Gonzales. 

Berlanga Extends Kayo Streak to 12

"Knockout Artist" Edgar Berlanga (12-0, 12 KOs) won his twelfth straight fight by way of knockout over Gregory Trenel (11-5-2, 3 KOs) in the first round of a middleweight contest scheduled for eight. Berlanga answered the bell by landing crushing shots on his French opponent. Trenel hit the canvas after Berlanga, a native of New York, connected with a left hook to the head. Trenel hesitantly pulled himself up from the canvas only to be beaten into submission seconds later. Berlanga landed numerous left hands, at will, on the defenseless Trenel. Referee Benjy Esteves saw enough of the massacre at the 2:24 mark of the opening frame.

Philadelphia's Kroll Wins by UD 

Undefeated welterweights Paul Kroll (5-0, 4 KOs) and Shinard Bunch (2-1, 2 KOs) battled through a six round bout. The two men put on a display of speed throughout the opening frame of the contest in front of a crowd that roared with approval. As the first round ended, the referee had to pull Kroll away from the dogfight that was highlighted by great exchanges of multi-punch combos. In the second round, the two men slowed down the pace of the bout.

Bunch unloaded a three punch combo on Kroll in the third. The fourth round kicked off with a exchange of big shots near the center of the ring. Later in this round, Kroll put the pedal to the metal as he aggressively nailed Bunch with a series of multi-punch combos to the head and body, shots that made Bunch slump into the ropes. At this point of the fight, the advantage was seized by Kroll who landed big shots that were responded to by Bunch clinches and wrap-ups. This was especially the case in the fifth round when Kroll connected with a right hook to Bunch's head. Seconds later, Kroll tee'd off on Bunch with a series of shots, but Bunch managed to dance out of the trap on shaky legs. 

In the sixth round, Kroll went into knockout mode chasing Bunch around the ring and swinging wildly at his opponent, missing more than connecting. To the crowd's dismay, Bunch, clearly beat up from rounds of taking damage, managed to stay on his feet. Referee Gary Rosato had to pull Kroll off of Bunch as the bell marking the end of the round rang. The judges scored the bout 58-56 twice and 59-55 for Kroll. 

Conto Sweeps "Game" Del Rio 

Philadelphia's Sonny Conto (4-0, 3 KOs) defeated a tough opponent in Mexico's Guillermo Del Rio (2-3-1, 2 KOs) to the hometown crowd's delight on Saturday night. Conto went on the attack early in the first of this four rounder as he punished Del Rio with straight left and right hands to the head and body. Del Rio was rocked with a big overhand right to the head in the final 30 seconds of the first round, but showed his grit by staying on his feet and surviving the opening the frame. Conto had to deal with Del Rio's clinching and wrapping throughout the second round. As the round neared its end, this strategy turned into wild swinging at Conto that failed to hit its mark. A Conto left hook made Del Rio drop into the ropes, but the Mexican heavyweight again made it to the end of the round.

Sonny landed shots at will on Del Rio in the third which appeared to have a damaging effect on him. Again, to the frustration of Conto and the audience, Del Rio's body did not hit the canvas. The crowd roared "Sonny! Sonny!" in the final round as the Philly heavyweight clubbed Del Rio. Del Rio deaf to the chants of the Liacouras Center, valiantly fought on. As the round neared its end, Conto finally sent Del Rio crashing to the canvas with a left hand to the head. Del Rio, on wobbly legs, pulled himself up for the unanimous decision defeat. All three judges scored the bout 40-35 for the heavyweight prospect Conto.

Smith Dominates Abdullah in Six 

Philly's Donald Smith (10-0, 6 KOs) won his tenth fight as a professional over Colorado's Raheem Abdullah (3-3). Smith controlled the momentum of the featherweight contest throughout the bout, and answered all of Abdullah's attacks with effective multi-punch combos of his own. Smith closed out his dominant performance by hammering Abdullah with right hands to the body as the fight came to a conclusion. The judges scored the fight 59-53 twice and 60-52 for Smith.

Adorno Wins by Kayo

Jeremy Adorno (2-0, 1 KO) defeated Fernando Robles (2-2) by knockout victory in a super bantamweight bout that was scheduled for four rounds. The knockout shot came at the 2:01 mark of the third round when Adorno dropped Robles with a right hook to the body.

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Top Rank Stars Shine from the Garden: Crawford vs. Khan Results

By Matt Ward, Ringside

World championship boxing presented by Bob Arum's Top Rank returned to the Mecca of Boxing Madison Square Garden last night with a WBO World Welterweight title bout between boxing veterans and future Hall of Famers, Amir Khan (33-5, 20 KOs) and Terence Crawford (35-0, 26 KOs). Despite the fact that Crawford entered this bout as the favorite in betting circles, many boxing insiders believed that this would be a competitive matchup between two proven warriors. Unfortunately, Khan did not live up to the expectations of these boxing analysts. 

Crawford started the fireworks early in the main event with a first round knockdown. The shot that sent Khan crashing to the canvas was a big right hand to the head. Although Khan pulled himself up from the mat, Crawford's message had been sent loud and clear to Khan, who appeared to be on shaky legs for the remainder of the opening frame. Khan answered the second round bell a scared man, fighting most of the round with cautionary and defensive maneuvers. 

Khan appeared to settle down in the third round when he started to let his hands go against Crawford, who appeared to hold back offensively throughout the round. In the fourth round, Crawford unloaded on Khan with a multi-punch combo. Khan, again being reminded of Crawford's power, moved away from the pressure and chose not to exchange blows with the "Pride of Omaha." Crawford continued to stalk Khan, and around the 30 second mark of the fourth, hurt Khan again with a viscous multi-punch combo. Khan, hoping to make it to the bell, "jumped on the bike," and moved away from Crawford. He saved face in the eyes of the fans by cracking Crawford with a hard right hand to the head as the bell rang. 

Crawford snapped Khan's head back with a well-placed right hand to the head in the fifth. For the remainder of the round, Khan's form "went to hell" as he swung wildly at the calm and composed Crawford. At the end of the round, Khan walked back to his corner a frustrated and disheveled man. In the sixth round, Crawford connected with a left uppercut that landed below the belt. The referee, taking notice of the incidental low blow, called for a timeout to give Khan adequate time to recover. Instead of taking the full five minutes he was entitled to, Khan informed the ringside physician and his corner that he was unable to continue in the bout. The end came at the 47 second mark of the sixth round of a scheduled 12 round contest. Crawford walked away the winner by TKO, and called out Errol Spence in his post-fight interview. 

Knockout artist and Brooklyn native Teofimo Lopez (13-0, 11 KOs) added another knockout to his record last night over Finland's Edis Tatli (31-3, 10 KOs). Both fighters spent the opening round feeling one another out. Lopez put pressure on Tatli in the second round. Tatli employed some "fancy" footwork in the fourth round, as Lopez stalked him around the ring. Tatli had a smart game plan through four, choosing to not brawl with the dangerous and tough Lopez. Lopez finally caught up with Tatli towards the end of the fourth, landing a series of big shots that forced Tatli to wrap him up. 

Lopez landed a hard right hand to the ribs of Tatli that dropped the fighter to his knees. The referee counted Tatli out at the 1:32 mark of the fifth round. Lopez celebrated his eleventh knockout victory with a back flip. 

Newark, New Jersey's Shakur Stevenson (11-0, 6 KOs) continued his winning ways last night, and in the process captured the IBF Intercontinetal and NBO Featherweight titles. Stevenson's opponent Christopher Diaz (24-2, 16 KOs), trained by legendary trainer Freddie Roach, wore trunks that paid homage to the Philadelphia Phillies logo text style. The two fighters spent the first round feeling one another out. Stevenson fought a smart second round as he landed several solid and clean shots, and displayed outstanding defense against his tough veteran opponent. 

Stevenson proved to be the faster fighter throughout round three, giving Diaz problems adjusting to his style. Stevenson connected with a big straight left to the head in the third. Later in the round, a multi-punch combo around the 30 second mark shook Diaz. By the fifth round, every shot Diaz landed was answered by double the number of shots by Stevenson. Stevenson peppered a frustrated Diaz with multiple straight left-right hand combos in the fifth round. 

By the sixth round, Stevenson was toying with Diaz as he tee'd off on him at will. Diaz winced under a hard left hand in the first minute of the sixth round. In the seventh round, both men were noticeably taking turns stepping on one another's lead toes as they threw punches. 

In the tenth and final round, the two fighters were openly taunting one another. Both fighters cruised through this round. The only "notable" moment involved Stevenson urging an exhausted Diaz to come forward and strike him. The judges scored the bout 100-90, 99-91, and 98-92 for Stevenson. 

The pay-per-view portion of the card kicked off at 9:00 PM EST with a lightweight fight between Bryan Vasquez (37-4, 20 KOs) and Felix Verdejo (25-1, 16 KOs). In what could have been a competitive fight, Felix Verdejo dominated the ten round contest. Verdejo picked up the momentum in the second, when he easily won the round by landing the cleaner shots throughout the frame. 

In the third round, Vasquez aggressively came forward numerous times but was always greeted with a Verdejo jab to the head. As the round came close to its end, a cut appeared under Verdejo's left eye. Verdejo connected with a big left-right hand combo to the head of Vasquez in the fifth. 

Verdejo continued to put pressure on Vasquez in the sixth and seventh round, but Vasquez escaped these attacks or wrapped his opponent up. In the eighth round, Verdejo landed a big right to the head, followed up with multi-punch body shots. In the tenth round, Vasquez hurt Verdejo with a left to the head. Both men, on shaky legs, exchanged big shots in the center of the ring during the final seconds of the fight. The judges scored the bout 97-93 twice and 98-92 for Verdejo. 

Frank Galarza (20-3-2, 12 KOs) fought Carlos Adames (17-0, 13 KOs) for the NABF/NABO Super Welterweight title. The two fighters spent the first round feeling each other out. The big highlight of this opening round was an Adames big left hand to the side of Galarza's head. There was limited action again in the second round as both men continued to fight cautiously from a safe distance. Adames, who is trained by Robert Garcia, came out swinging in the third round. 

Adames followed up his offensive onslaught in the fourth round, when he knocked Galarza down in the first 30 seconds of the round with a left hand to the jawline. Adames jumped all over Galarza when he pulled himself up from the canvas. He beat Galarza into the corner with a viscous multi-punch combo that forced referee Benjy Esteves to call a halt to the action at 1:07 of the fourth round of a scheduled ten rounds. 

Edgar Berlanga (10-0, 10 KOs) made fast work of Samir Barbosa (37-16-3, 26 KOs) last night. Berlanga, the fan favorite, put pressure on Barbosa early in the opening frame of a scheduled eight round middleweight contest. A Berlanga left hand to the jaw stunned Barbosa, and sent him stumbling back into the ropes. The referee saw enough at the 46 second mark after Berlanga landed two consecutive straight right hands to his opponent's face. 

Ireland's Larry Fryers (10-1, 3 KOs) defeated Dakota Polley (5-3, 2KOs) in a six round super lightweight contest. The two fighters spent most of the first round feeling one another out. Fryers hammered away at Polley, the son of current professional Byron Polley, in the second round after appearing to settle into his fighting rhythm. Fryers landed big right and left hands to the head of Polley, coupled with an increase in body shots during this frame. 

By the fourth round, it was evident that Fryers was throwing more punches. Despite this fact, Polley was not the one with swelling under both eyes. By the fifth round, Fryers had officially landed more punches in every round than his opponent. 

The action was paused in the fifth round around the 1:59 mark after the referee noticed the bad cut above Polley's right eye caused by an accidental headbutt. The doctor examined the cut and opted to allow him to continue. Soon after the timeout, Fryers went on the attack and knocked Polley off balance with a multi-punch combo. Polley returned to his corner with blood running down the side of his face. Polley's cut man certainly earned his paycheck last night at the Garden! 

Before the start of the sixth round, the ringside physician took another look at Polley's eye and allowed him to continue. Polley lost a point in the sixth for what appeared to be rabbit punches. All three judges scored the bout 60-53 for Fryers. 

Two-time Indian Olympian Vikas Krishan (2-0, 1 KO) continued his winning ways as a professional in the super welterweight division with a unanimous decision victory over Missouri's Noah Kidd (3-2-1, 2 KOs). Krishan answered the opening bell throwing big shots, however, slowed down midway through the round. Krishan connected with a flush right hand to the jaw of Kidd in the first round.

Krishan landed a series of big left hands to the head and body of Kidd in the third round. At the end of the third round, blood trickled out of a cut on the side of Krishan's right eye. A Krishan left hook to the Kidd's head in the fourth appeared to take the steam out of him. This shot forced Kidd to readjust his defensive stance, as he clearly kept his guard up to better protect his head as the fight continued. 

Kidd's big uppercuts and shots forced Krishan to backpedal into the ropes in the fifth round. In the sixth and final round, Kidd, realizing he was behind in the cards, desperately charged at Krishan looking for a late knockout to no avail. The judges scored the bout 60-54 twice and 59-55 for Krishan.

Bantamweights Lawrence Newton (12-0, 7 KOs) and Jonathan Garza (7-3, 2 KOs) fought in a six round contest. Early on, Garza swung wildly trying to make something happen against the taller and lengthier Newton. Newton connected with big right hands to Garza's head in the second round. 

Garza spent much of the third round trying to punch up at Newton. These upward shots opened himself up for Newton to bang away at Garza with quality body work. Garza tried to battle back in the fourth but was peppered with clean and accurate shots as he moved forward. Garza showed spirit in the closing seconds of this round by landing a hard right hand on Newton's jaw. 

Garza chased Newton in the fifth round, until Newton began to pick Garza apart with multi-punch combos to the head and body. The two men had a good exchange in the final round, but Newton again had the advantage during this frame by landing the cleaner and more effective shots. Garza looked smoked as the final bell rang. The judges scored the bout 59-55 twice and and 60-54 for Newton. 

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Evander Holyfield's Real Deal Showcase Series I - Friday, January 26, 2018 (Philadelphia, PA)

Numerous stars of boxing were out last night in Philadelphia for Evander Holyfield's The Real Deal Boxing show. Evander Holyfield, Larry Holmes, Michael Spinks, Buster Drayton, Bert Cooper, Kevin Howard, Lionel Byarm, and Jacqui Frazier-Lyde were all in attendance to see the promotion's inaugural show at the SugarHouse Casino in South Philadelphia. The card featured seven professional bouts in weight classes ranging from lightweight to cruiserweight.

The opening bout of the evening featured welterweights, Janelson Bocachica (9-0-0, 6 KOs) and Victor Eddy Gaytan (2-4-0, 1 KO) in a six round bout. In the first round, Bocachica fought aggressively and pinned his opponent against the ropes with a barrage of punches. Mexico's Gaytan was knocked down in the second round by a Bocachica right hand to the head. The Mexican recovered from this knockdown to fight valiantly through the next two rounds. In the fifth round, it was evident that his opponent's punches were taking their toll physically on Gaytan, who had bad swelling under his right eye. The end came at the 13 second mark of the fifth round when Detroit's Bocachica connected with another hard right to the head that sent his opponent to the canvas. This was Bocachica's second straight win by knockout.

Middleweights, Edgar Berlanga (7-0-0, 7 KOs) and Jaime Barboza (19-14-0, 9 KOs) were scheduled to fight in a six round bout. The New York native, Berlanga, looking to preserve his knockout streak had other plans for the length of the fight as he went on the offensive from the opening bell. Early in the first round, Barboza was knocked down by a left upper cut to the head. He recovered from this knockdown only to be knocked out by a vicious multi-punch combo to the head and body at the 2:42 mark of the first round.

The third bout of the evening featured local prospect, Brandon Robinson (9-1-0, 7 KOs) and Juan Celin Zapata (5-12-2, 3 KOs) of the Bronx, New York. Robinson made quick work of his opponent by knocking him out with a right hand to the head at the 1:50 mark of the first round of the super middleweight bout that was scheduled for six rounds. Robinson has now won nine straight fights since losing his professional debut in 2016 to Trenton's Mike Hilton.

Kennedy Katende (3-0, 1 KO) and Lyubomyr Pinchuk (4-1, 3 KOs) fought in the first and only fight to go to the judges' scorecards last night. The cruiserweights fought in a six round bout in which Katende controlled a bulk of the action. Pinchuk, the lengthy Ukranian fighter, was knocked down in the first round by a Katende left hook to the head. Pinchuk recovered from the knockdown, and stayed on his feet for the remainder of the contest. Katende controlled the tempo of the fight by effectively working his opponent's body. Pinchuk landed a series of multi-punch combos on his opponent, but the shots lacked power. Two judges scored the bout 59-54, with the third judge scoring the contest 58-55 all in favor of the winner by unanimous decision Kennedy Katende.

Philadelphia's Poindexter Knight (2-0, 2 KOs) fought Sunbury, Pennsylvania's Jordan Morales (2-4, 2 KOs) in a welterweight bout that was scheduled for four rounds. Knight came out as the aggressor after the opening bell rang, and bullied his opponent from the outset. Morales was knocked down by a Knight left hand to the head in the first round. Morales, clearly shaken from this knockdown, rose from the canvas only to be knocked out soon after by a two-punch combo of a left and right hand to the head that sent him crashing down to the canvas at the 2:19 mark of the first round.

The co-main event of the evening featured a welterweight contest between Jaron Ennis (18-0-0, 16 KOs) and Gustavo Garibay (13-10-2, 5 KOs). Philadelphia's Ennis appeared to hurt Garibay in the first round with a multi-punch combo, but the tough Mexican fighter managed to stay on his feet. Ennis dominated the second round, and closed out the round's action with a brutal multi-punch combo that was highlighted with big left and right hooks. Garibay answered the third round bell despite showing the damage on his face from the previous two rounds. Garibay took more damage in the third round, but the fighter managed to survive the round. Ennis continued to viciously beat Garibay throughout the fourth round. The referee stopped the bout after Ennis landed a hard right hook to Garibay's head. The action ended at the 2:14 mark of the fourth of six rounds, with Ennis winning by TKO.

The main event of the evening featured Philadelphia prospect, Steven Ortiz (8-0-, 3 KOs) and Washington D. C.'s Joshua Davis (11-3, 5 KO's). The two lightweights fought for the WBF North American Regional Junior Lightweight Title in a bout that was scheduled for eight rounds. Ortiz controlled the action through just under two rounds of boxing. In the second round, Ortiz sent Davis to the canvas three times. The first knockdown came after Ortiz connected with a left hook to Davis' head. The second knockdown came after Ortiz landed a brutal multi-punch combo to the head and body of his opponent. The third and final knockdown was the result of an Ortiz right hand to Davis' head. Referee Gary Rosato called an end to the bout at the 2:21 mark of the second round.

MW

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Evander Holyfield's Real Deal Showcase Series I - Bouts and Weights

Professional boxing returns to the SugarHouse Casino in South Philadelphia on January 26, 2018. Evander Holyfield's Real Deal Showcase Series I features a seven fight card headlined with an eight round main event between lightweights, Steven Ortiz (7-0, 2 KOs) of Philadelphia and Washington D.C.'s Joshua Davis (11-2, 5 KOs). Ortiz is coming off of a June 24th victory over Tyrome Jones (4-2-1, 1 KO). Davis suffered his second career defeat on October 19th at the hands of Ray Lampkin (11-0, 4 KOs). The card also features an eight round bout between welterweights, Jaron "Boots" Ennis (17-0, 15 KOs) and Gustavo Garibay (13-9-2, 5 KOs). Ennis, a tough fighter from Philadelphia, knocked out George Sosa (15-11-1, 15 KOs) in the second round of their December 1, 2017 bout.

Check out Luis Cortes' recent interview with Ennis!

Below are the bouts and weights for tomorrow night's card:

Steven Ortiz (7-0-0, 2 KOs) - 133.9 lbs. vs. Joshua Davis (11-2-0, 5 KO's) - 133.1 lbs. - eight rounds, lightweights

Jaron Ennis (17-0-0, 15 KOs) - 149.5 lbs. vs. Gustavo Garibay (13-9-2, 5 KOs) - 149.4 lbs. - six rounds, welterweights

Poindexter Knight (1-0-0, 1 KO) - 147.9 lbs. vs. Jordan Morales (2-3-0, 2 KOs) - 146.3 lbs. - four rounds, welterweights

Kennedy Katende (2-0-0, 1 KO) - 195.9 lbs. vs. Lyubomyr Pinchuk (4-0-0, 3 KOs) - 191.4 lbs. - six rounds, cruiserweights

Brandon Robinson (8-1-0, 6 KOs) - 168.1 lbs. vs. Juan Celin Zapata (5-11-2, 3 KOs) - 167.1 lbs. - six rounds, super middleweights

Edgar Berlanga (6-0-0, 6 KOs) - 163.5 lbs. vs. Jaime Barboza (19-13-0, 9 KOs) - 164.1 lbs. - six rounds, middleweights

Janelson Bocachica (8-0-0, 5 KOs) - 147.2 lbs. vs. Victor Eddy Gaytan (2-3-0, 1 KO) - 145.7 lbs. - six rounds, welterweights

MW

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