Bernadin Annihilates Robles on Top of Kings Promotions Card

By Frank Bartolini, Ringside

Marshall Kauffman's Kings Promotions staged a four-bout card on Friday night at South Philly's the 2300 Arena. In the feature bout, James Bernadin of Lancaster annihilated Kenny Robles of Staten Island, to obtain a unanimous 8-round decision. Approximately 750 fans came to watch fights that showed how quality, instead of quantity, will always send the consumer home satisfied.

The main event showcased Bernadin, an undefeated fighter with less than ten fights and Robles, a ticket-selling prospect. Robles, 138.8 lbs., started fast and took it to Bernadin in the first two minutes of round one. However, from that point on, the fight was all Bernadin. A dedicated body puncher, Bernadin, 138.9 lbs., continuously landed blows to the pit of Robles' stomach while mixing in strikes to the sides of his foe's torso.

During the contest, Bernadin was warned for low blows, but this did not deter his commitment to attacking Robles' midsection. Able, to stay in the pocket and deflect punches, a confident Bernadin gained momentum by initiating his offense from that position.

Although Robles was taking a shellacking, he never stopped trying to change the tide of the fight. In the last three sessions, Bernadin began stalking Robles, landing heavy wallops with both hands to the head. Finishing strong, Bernadin stunned and rocked Robles, scoring bombs off his cranium. Floundering all around the ring, Robles did all he could to finish the match on his feet - which he did.

All three judges had Bernadin ahead by a large margin, 79-73 by two judges and 78-74 by the third. Bernadin improved his record to 7-0-1, 4 KOs. At 32 years old, Robles, 9-2, 3 KOs, must decide his next course of action.

After witnessing Bernadin fight several times on the club circuit in Eastern Pennsylvania, this scribe sees a boxer who gets wild at times, but with some fine tuning, can advance in the junior welterweight ranks. Unbeknownst to most of the boxing community, Bernadin is one of the hottest professional prospects in PA.

DiBella Sports and Entertainment-promoted lightweight southpaw, Victor Padilla, Williamstown, NJ, improved to 10-0, 9 KOs by stopping tough journeyman, Jesus Perez of Culiacan, Mexico, at 1:53 of round three. Padilla, 136 lbs., dropped Perez, 136 lbs., in the second and third stanzas. Unable to rise after the second knockdown, referee Eric Dali counted out the defeated battler. Perez' record fell below .500 to 13-14-1, 7 KOs.

Two very skilled welterweights slugged it out in one of the best four-round scraps a fan could ask for. Thanjhae Teasley, Allentown, PA, 144.8 lbs., squeezed out a four-round majority decision over Jetter Burgos, Bronx, NY, 145.8 lbs. Teasley took two of the official scores, 39-37, while the third judge had it 38-38. Burgos, 1-1, lost for the first time. Teasley improved to 3-0, 2 KOs.

Light-hitting Philadelphia native James Martin, 156.5 lbs., nearly pitched a shutout against Lukasz Barabasz, of Mikolow, Poland, to commence the evening. Winning by scores of 39-37 and 40-36 twice, Martin improved to 8-3. He is scheduled to fight again on June 4th in Houston. Barabasz, 157.5 lbs., slid to 1-4, 1 KO. 

“Hot Sauce” Henderson Halts Robinson; Remains Undefeated

By Steve Peacock, Ringside

Pro boxer Brandon “B-Rob” Robinson confidently prowled the ring the first four of ten possible rounds in the main event of King’s Promotions’ boxing spectacular on Friday. But soon after, he would find himself on all fours, staring at the canvas of the 2300 Arena in South Philadelphia.

Indeed, Robinson, the local favorite from Darby, PA, initially maintained a slight edge over his opponent, Ft. Worth, Texas-born Kalvin “Hot Sauce” Henderson. By 2:08 of round seven, however, the referee stopped the bout after Robinson—his swollen left eye almost completely closed and dripping blood—had been dropped to the mat for a third time, courtesy of Henderson, the new Universal Boxing Federation (UBF) Inter Continental Super Middleweight Title champion.

Although Henderson ultimately overwhelmed Robinson, at first glance it looked like B-Rob was most likely to emerge as the dominant pugilist. Toward the end of the first round, for instance, Robinson initiated a rapid-fire offensive halted only by the ring of the bell, followed next round by a couple of powerful shots to Henderson’s face.

Though Robinson remained strong throughout the third round, it was then that Henderson first offered a clue that the balance of power was about to change: as the round neared its end, “Hot Sauce” landed a glove powerful enough to send B-Rob one unsteady step backwards while eliciting an audible response from the 2300 Arena audience.

Blood began visibly dripping from the corner of Robinson’s left eye in the fifth round, which is when Henderson took control. Indeed, segments of the South Philly crowd gasped when a solid Henderson punch dropped B-Rob to a single knee. As Robinson walked to his corner, additionally it became obvious that his left eye was now battered shut.

The climax came as Henderson (11-0) dropped Robinson (11-2) to his hands and knees, albeit briefly, and soon delivered him helplessly again to all fours. It was this back-to-back flooring that caused the referee to stop the bout at 2:08 of round seven by way of TKO.

Bout 5/Co-Main Event: Heavyweights

Big boys Paul Koon of Philly and Cade Rodriguez of Monroe, GA immediately came out swinging and attempting to damage to each other. Koon after the first round held a slight edge over his opponent, largely because Rodriguez failed to land multiple, hard shots that—fortunately for Koon—missed their intended target.

While Koon briefly had Rodriguez against the ropes in the next round, his efforts were soon repelled. Similarly, though Rodriguez appeared to give Koon a scare in the third, those offensive measures were largely ineffective. In the fourth and final round, the two behemoths clearly were fatigued, and the pace of the battle nearly slowed the competition to a halt.

The judges unanimously scored in favor of Koon (4-0), who remains undefeated. Rodriguez is now 2-3.

Bout 4: Super Bantamweights

It wasn’t until round two that Romuel Cruz of Philly and Hugo Rodriguez of Mexico stepped up the action; while both peppered each other with a variety of punches, Rodriguez wildly missed several of his attempted shots. Cruz maintained the upper hand throughout the remainder of the four-round bout, which he won by way of unanimous decision.

Bout 3: Super Welterweights

Andy Gonzales (6-3-1) of Worcester, MA started out strong against—indeed, briefly appeared to dominate—North Philly boxer Isaiah Wise (7-2-1). The resilient Wise, however, was undeterred, turning the bout into an all-out brawl and subsequently landing a solid right hook that caused Gonzales to suddenly stare into space, defenseless, arms down.

Wisely taking advantage of the situation, Wise once again struck Gonzales and sent him backwards into the corner, where Gonzales’s bottom landed on the mat. Had it not been for the corner ring pads and adjacent ropes, surely he would have been on his back.

Briefly saved by the bell, a one-minute reprieve enabled Gonzales to muster enough strength to fight back at the start of the second round. A barrage of uppercuts and hooks from Wise, however, quickly rendered useless any effort by the battered Gonzales.

The referee stopped the potential six-round contest 40 seconds into round two, and Wise won by way of TKO.

Bout 2: Lightweights

James Bernadin (3-0-1) of Philly and Sheldon Deverteuil (2-0-1) of Lancaster, PA from the beginning of the bout appeared evenly matched, each exchanging punches consistently albeit with Bernadin doing so with greater frequency. Deverteuil wasted no time in round two, landing a hard cross that seemed to temporarily startle Bernadin, who responded with a series of consecutively missed shots.

Bernadin briefly had his opponent against the ropes, but failed to capitalize on those brief moments of domination in the 3rd. Despite giving his best, it was insufficient to cause Deverteuil to capitulate. In the fourth and final round, Bernadin appeared to take control of the ring, twice stinging Deverteuil in the early moments.

After four rounds, the judges deemed the bout to be a draw.

Bout 1: Light Heavyweights

Prospects for victory quickly withered for Ronnie Lawrence, who faced Travis "Holy" Toledo in the opening bout. Toledo about a minute into the match clearly was the dominant pugilist. An alternate barrage of Toledo-thrown body punches and jabs soon made Lawrence wobble his way to the mat. By way of KO at 2:30, Toledo extended his victory streak to 4-0, while Lawrence dropped to 0-3.

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Kings Promotions Recent Results & Preview

Kings Promotions continues their busy schedule of providing action fights for the Philadelphia and North East Pennsylvania area fight fans. On Friday night, September 14th, a nine fight card took place at 2300 Arena in South Philadelphia.  The card was featured on Fight Night Live, which is streamed on Facebook.  So far over 200,000 fans have viewed the action. Below are the results from this great night of action. 

Shyngyskhan Tazhibay (6-0, 2 KOs) won a four round decision over Justin Johnson (6-18-6) in a welterweight fight. Tazhibay looked solid as he continues his development.  

James Bernadin (1-0, 1 KO) stopped Christopher Burogos (1-3-1) at the 2:19 mark of the third round. Bernadin came out firing power shots and withstood the game effort from Burogos, who tested the new professional’s stamina and will. Bernadin was able to land power rights that finally halted the fight.  

Yeri Andujar (1-0, 1 KO) stopped the returning Crystian Peguero (2-1, 1 KO) in the third round at the 2:36 minute mark. Peguero was considered the favorite, but was fighting for the first time in a year. Andujar blasted away at the body of Peguero from the start of the fight, which effectively broke down the favorite, who clearly suffered from his long lay-off.  

Dalyann Butt (2-0) out boxed Anthony Smith (1-3, 1 KO) over four rounds for a unanimous decision victory.  

Keeshawn Williams (3-0, 1 KO) also used the four rounds to out work and out box Farhad Fatulla (1-2).  

In a good bantamweight fight, Alejandro Jimenez (3-0, 1 KO) defeated Jerrod Minor (1-2-2, 1 KO). After four rounds, it was clear that Jimenez was the winner, as he applied effective aggression behind a good jab to land the more telling power shots.  

Former three time Olympian Anvar Yunusov (5-0, 2 KOs) proved yet again that he is a prospect to watch. After landing a crisp right hook that floored Angel Monreal (10-11-1, 3 KOs). Monreal rose to his feet and tried to survive with a jab. Yunusov would land a crushing straight left from his southpaw stance that ended the fight at 2:39 of the opening round.  

Terrell Williams (17-0, 13 KOs) got a great night of work and a quality test from David Grayton (15-3-1, 11 KOs). Williams landed a crushing straight right hand that dropped Grayton in the first round. After another right in the third put Grayton down, it looked as though it would be a quick night for Williams. Grayton proved his value as he battled through the early knockdowns to push Williams into the middle rounds. This forced Williams to prove that he is a true near future contender as he had to battle his own fatigue and the on coming assault from Grayton. It was a little too much, too late for Grayton as Williams lasted to the final bell wining a ten round decision. Scores were 97-92, 98-89, and 98-90.  

In the main event, Brandon Robinson (11-1, 8 KOs) warmed up in the second round and got to work landing hard body shots on Ernest Amuzu (24-4, 22 KOs).  Robinson's momentum continued into the third round and the two fighters started to exchange power shots when Robinson pinned Amuzu in the corner. As Amuzu escaped, Robinson landed a huge right hand bomb that made Amuzu walk backwards on spaghetti legs. Just as he reached the other side of the ring, Robinson landed a second right hand bomb that prompted the referee to stop the fight at the 2:04 mark of the third round. Robinson continues to improve, and at the age of 30 will be looked for more fights to rise up the ranks in 2019.     

Upcoming Kings Action:

On Tuesday night September 25th, Kings Promotions returns to the Sands Hotel and Casino in Bethlehem, PA. Yet another nine fight card will take place that will feature a good eight round battle between Anthony Mercado (11-4, 9 KOs) and Victor Vazquez (10-4, 3 KOs). Both fighters have been improving as of late and Vazquez, who is co-trained by lightweight prospect Branden Pizzaro's father Angel Pizzaro, has impressed with his now disciplined jab, which he uses to set up his powerful right hand.  

Also on this night, featherweight prospect Stephen "Scooter" Fulton (13-0, 6 KOs) will continue his rise through the featherweight ranks as he takes on the tough Esteban Aquino (12-5, 7 KOs).  Fulton is a former National Golden Gloves and Ringside champion. Fulton is always in an entertaining fight, and with Aquino is looking to prove that he is a true challenger. Look for this fight to be no different. 

Other fights on this card will feature the following fan favorites: Erik Spring, Joe Hanks, Martino Jules, and heavyweight Michael Coffie.  

Tickets are still available and start at just $35. There is no bad seat in the house, and the Sands and Kings always provide fan friendly fights at a great price. Tickets can be purchased from the Sands Casino box office here.  

-Luis A. Cortes III

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