“Hot Sauce” Henderson Harnesses His Dozenth Victory

By Steve Peacock, Ringside

Pro boxer Kalvin “Hot Sauce” Henderson returned to the City of Brotherly Love on Friday night to attain win #12, preserving an undefeated record by repeatedly knocking down and ultimately taking down Antowyan Aikens.  

Referee Benji Estevez stopped the bout at 2:14 of the third round after the Fayetteville, Arkansas-based Henderson (12-0; 8 KOs) sent Aikens (13-7-1; 1 KO) of Mays Landing, NJ to the canvas for the fifth time.

This successful contest was Henderson’s 2^nd consecutive match via King’s Promotions/Titans Boxing Promotions and likewise was his 2^nd consecutive victory at the 2300 Arena in South Philly.

At the start of this super-middleweight competition Henderson appeared to hold, at best, a slight advantage over Aikens. But by round two, “Hot Sauce” clearly established himself as the dominant pugilist.

A left jab by Henderson during the second round had hurtled Aikens to the mat—the very place to which Hot Sauce then returned him moments later.

Indeed, Aikens actually took a trio of trips to the canvas that round, including another one immediately prior to the bell bringing the 2^nd to its inevitable conclusion.

Henderson in the 3^rd once again downed Aikens with a left jab then dropped him to the canvas yet again before referee Benji Estevez stopped the bout, thereby giving the TKO victory to Hot Sauce.

Back in December, Henderson at this same arena had handed to Brandon Robinson only the second defeat of “B-Rob’s” career. Though Robinson in that bout fared slightly better—duration-wise, anyway—than Aikens on Friday, he nonetheless had received an eye-bloodying, mat-visiting loss at the hands of Henderson in late 2018.

Robinson likewise returned to South Philly this weekend to face a different opponent—and with different results as the following segment of this report will show.

SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHTS

Brandon “B-Rob” Robinson (13-2; 8 KOs ) of Upper Darby, Pa. in the evening’s co-main event emerged victorious over DeVaun Lee (10-6-1; 5 KOs) of Jamaica, Queens.

B-Rob soon after the bout had begun threw a right jab that stunned Lee, but by the end of the round Lee reciprocated, stemming his opponent’s brief momentum and momentarily causing Robinson to wobble.

Over the next two rounds B-Rob held the advantage, with Lee remaining in contention to say the least. Indeed, by the fourth a resilient Lee looked like he was gaining and not losing ground, though the fifth revealed—however briefly—that Lee could be in trouble.

A relatively even exchange took place between the two boxers in the last three. Robinson appeared to minimally maintain the edge in the sixth, but barely.

Notably, Robinson and Lee took turns connecting a hard right just before the 10-second warning at each of the final rounds, with B-Rob landing a furious fist at the end of the seventh and Lee similarly reciprocating prior to the timekeeper’s “clack” nearing bout’s end.

The judges scored 77-74 for Robinson, 76-75 for Lee, and 77-75 in favor of Robinson, who won by split decision.

SUPER BANTAMWEIGHTS

Raeese Aleem (14-0; 8 KOs) of Las Vegas quickly set Ramiro Robles (15-9-2) of Queretaro, Mexico on his ass. Upon standing, Aleem slammed Robles with a left uppercut and right jab. Moments later, after a brief respite thanks to an inquiring referee, Aleem leveraged that same combo and dropped Robles to his knees. The bout was over at 1:51, and Aleem won by way of 1^st round TKO.

LIGHTWEIGHTS

This match can be summed up in two sentences: Alycia Baumgardner (7-1; 5 KOs) of Fremont, Ohio quickly pummeled Gabriella Mezei (9-18-5) of Romania with multiple left-right combos, jabs and uppercuts. As a result, the bout barely made it past the one-minute mark (1:08) before being stopped, and Baumgardner by way of TKO was subsequently crowned USBF Women’s Silver Champion.

WELTERWIGHTS

Philly favorite Paul “The Punisher” Kroll (3-0; 3 KOs ) unleashed a combo of head and body shots against  Vincent Floyd (4-7-1; 2 KOs) in the first—that alternating barrage of rights and lefts quickly indicated the end was near for Floyd. Sure enough, the referee stopped the bout at 2:27, and Kroll was deemed victor by way of TKO.

MIDDLEWIEGHTS

The first of four consecutive 1^st round victories at this event, Ryan Umberger of Philly (2-0;  1 KO) just seconds into the match knocked to the mat a befuddled Daryl Fenton (1-5-1), who fights out of Washington, D.C.  “The Cockney Reject,” as the London-born Fenton is nicknamed, continued to sustain a battery of unrelenting Umberger shots until the ref jumped into to the stop this beating at 1:34. Umberger is now on a three-win, three KO streak.

FEATHERWEIGHTS

Antonio Dubose (11-2-1; 2 KOs) of Philly and Weusi Johnson (3-12-1) of Wilmington, Delaware went the full length of the scheduled six rounder. Dubose landed several left jabs that elicited responses from the audience throughout the first two rounds. At the very end of the third, Johnson was striking Dubose with significant force, and appeared further reinvigorated in the fourth.  Dubose at one point slammed an overhand right into the face of his opponent, but there was not much more to speak about either contender. Dubose emerged victorious by way of majority decision, with the judges scoring the bout 57-57, 58-56 and 59-55.

JR. MIDDLEWEIGHTS

First up was LaQuan Evans (1-1) out of Philly, facing Hector Mercado (3-10) of Puerto Rico. Evans started out literally on the wrong foot, nearly sliding a leg out of the ring, and Mercado wisely seized upon that error. Undaunted, Evans came back and mightily landed multiple shots that reminded his opponent that one slip does not make for a less formidable foe.  By the third, Mercado seemed fatigued, and could not get a break until Evans slipped to the canvas, albeit momentarily. Despite Mercado’s seemingly uncertain position, he landed enough shots to achieve a point advantage over Evans. The judges scored it 38-38, 39-37, and 40-36 for the majority decision in favor of Mercado. 

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Alternately Evasive and Invasive, Philly’s Yunusov Beats Colon of PR

By Steve Peacock, Ringside

The skillful ability of Philadelphia-based boxer Anvar Yunusov to duck punches while consistently hurling and landing shots on his opponent proved pivotal in his victory over Carlos Colon (5-2, 3 KOs) of Lares, Puerto Rico. Emerging victorious by way of unanimous decision, Yunusov (7-0, 3 KOs) succeeded in preserving his perfect record Friday night in the King’s Promotions/Titans Boxing Promotions main event at the SugarHouse Casino in Philly.

Following this intense 8-round battle, Yunusov was proclaimed as the new U.S. Boxing Federation (USBF) Silver Jr.-Lightweight champion, which was presented by World Boxing Foundation VP-North America James Gibbs, Jr.

Though the bout started out with an equally violent exchange between both boxers, Colon intermittently peppered his opponent with a barrage of punches that visibly—albeit briefly—stunned Yunusov, who responded with an impressive blend of adroit evasion coupled with impressive punching power.

A right jab from Colon drew blood from the right eye of Yunusov, followed by a Colon onslaught that then dropped him to his knees in the third round. And although both boxers viably would remain in contention for the win the remainder of the bout, Yunusov subsequently came into view as the dominant contender for the title belt.

Both boxers appeared undaunted by each other’s reciprocal battering, even after Yunusov in the fifth yet again dropped Colon to a knee.

The two tired fighters wildly missed and sometimes blocked about a dozen and a half punches in a rapid-fire exchange that took place in the final minute of the seventh.

Colon kept coming back, right until the end of the eighth and final round. Indeed, even when struck repeatedly with significant enough force to force Colon to involuntarily take a step or two backwards, he did not make it easy for Yunusov to secure the win.

Yunusov ultimately held a visible advantage over his resilient opponent, with two judges scoring the bout in his favor 78-71 and the third giving him a 79-71 advantage

Co-Main Event

Erik Spring (12-2-2, 1 KO) of Reading, Pa. and Terrance Williams (5-3-1, 1 KO) of York, Pa. went the distance in this 8-round super-welterweight competition. Although Spring attempted—and eventually succeeded—in wearing down Williams with a series of body shots, Williams consistently leveraged Spring’s position by reciprocating with multiple shots to his face.

Initially, Spring’s strategy did not seem worth it; although each blow to Williams’ torso was punishingly effective, Williams reciprocated with equally forceful shots to the Spring’s face.

By the fifth, Williams less frequently capitalized on Spring’s crouched and vulnerable position. Perhaps that is why—despite an overall impressive showing by Williams until the final bell—the majority of judges decided the bout in favor of Spring, 77-75, 77-77 and 76-75.

Super-Middleweights

Brandon Robinson (12-2, 9 KOs) of Upper Darby, Pa. planted Lawrence Blakely (5-13-2, 2 KOs) on his rear end just 2:49 into the first of six scheduled rounds. Indeed, Blakely—visibly wincing—got to his hands and knees and stayed in that position for about thirty seconds. His corner men had to bring a stool to him midway along the ropes, where they assisted him off the canvas. Robinson won by way of TKO.

Heavyweights (2)

Despite an impressive exchange in the first between Colby Madison (8-0-2, 4 KOs) and Emilio Salas (5-3-1, 3 KOs) of Yonkers, N.Y., Madison flattened Salas in the opening moments of the second. Salas got to his feet soon after, but not without appearing briefly delirious, as if examining cartoon birds chirping and flying circles around his head. Madison therefore won by way of TKO. 

Middleweights (2)

In one of the most intense battles of the evening— the second of two pro boxing debuts on the card—LaQuan Evans (1-0) of Philly emerged victorious over Jordan Demko (0-1) of Reading, Pa. Early in the bout, an aggressive Demko went on the attack, resulting in a 10-count for Evans from referee Dave Franciosi. Seemingly unfazed, Evans immediately came back with multiple head-snapping shots that, moments earlier, would have seemed unlikely to arise at that moment.

This vacillating domination continued in subsequent rounds. Demko in the third threw a left with such force that Evans bounced into, then forward from, a neutral corner. Then in the fourth, Evans had bloodied Demko’s left eye. Evans won via split decision, with two judges scoring 39-37 and 39-38 in his favor and one scoring the bout 39-37 in favor of Demko.

Jr. Welterweights

In this match-up of two fighters from Puerto Rico, Anthony Mercado (13-4, 10 KOs) dominated Andres Navarro (11-8-1, 7 KOs) from the start. By the third, Mercado struck Navarro with such might that the skin on Navarro’s face visibly wobbled. Mercado won by way TKO when Navarro’s corner stopped the bout.

Middleweights (1)

In the first pro boxing debut of the night, "Retro" Ryan Umberger (1-0) of Philly in a planned 4-round contest beat Brett Oren (0-1) of Harrisburg, Pa. Although Umberger immediately came out strong, Oren in the second managed to bloody his opponent’s nose. After three tumultuous rounds, referee Dave Franciosi called in the ringside physician, who then recommended the bout be stopped. Umberger won by way of TKO.

Heavyweights (1)

In round two of a planned 6-round fight, Michael Coffie (6-0, 5 KOs) of Brooklyn threw such a forceful left hook that he nearly send Eduardo Vitela (3-4, 2 KOs) tumbling backwards through the ropes. About a minute after this KO, Vitela barely made it upwards to his stool, even with assistance from his corner men. 

Welterweights

Mark Dawson (6-0-1, 3 KOs) of Philly in the first had quickly set the tone of this 6-round bout, landing a right body shot that caught the attention of Jordan Morales (3-7, 2 KOs) of Sunbury, Pa. Morales intermittently was able to throw and land a flurry of punches, but in the second Dawson landed another right that dropped Morales to a knee. But it was Dawson’s killer left over the next four rounds that successfully diminished any possibility of a Morales win. Dawson won by way of unanimous decision, with two judges scoring the bout 60-53 and the other 59-54.

Super Featherweights

In the first fight of the evening, Weusi Johnson (3-10-1) of Wilmington, Del. and Javier Oquendo (3-1-1, 1 KO) of Philly opened the event with a competitive battle that—in the opinion of this writer—was rightfully ruled a draw, despite subsequent boos from the audience. One judge scored the bout 39-37 in favor of Johnson, another 40-36 in favor of Oquendo, and one tie vote of 38-38.

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“Where the Hell Are You Going?” Witherspoon Gets TKO after Silgado Exits Ring

By Steve Peacock, Ringside

Perhaps Panamanian boxer Santander Silgado misconstrued Mark Fratto’s words when the Rising Star Promotions ring announcer proclaimed “It’s go time!” late Saturday night. But just two rounds later in the scheduled 10-round heavyweight fight against Chazz “The Gentlemen” Witherspoon of Paulsboro, N.J., Silgado (28-7; 22 KOs) indeed decided to “go”—quite literally. Silgado exited the ring, enabling the referee to subsequently raise the hand of Witherspoon (38-37; 28 KOs), who won by way of TKO.

As Silgado began to traverse the decorative rug toward the Showboat-Atlantic City arena exit, multiple audience members, clearly angry and disappointed, peppered him with shouts of “Where the hell are you going?”

It remains unclear why he apparently abandoned basic boxing-sportsmanship protocol by failing to remain in the ring while the announcer formally revealed the winner.

It remains perplexing why Silgado—who intermittently unleashed jolting lefts to Witherspoon’s body and did not appear to struggle greatly with his otherwise undaunted opponent—would, so it seemed, spontaneously terminate his Main Event fight.  

One knowledgeable but anonymous observer of the fight expressed to The Weigh-In, however, that the answer was not as complex as it seemed. “It’s simple,” he said. “He quit. Plain and simple, Silgado quit.”

N.J. Welterweight State Welterweight Championship

Several attendees—this writer included—opined that the co-main event between Anthony “Juice” Young of Atlantic City and Juan “The Beast” Rodriguez, Jr., of Union City, N.J., unequivocally demonstrated combat qualities worthy of Fight of the Night designation, even if informally.

After the opening Round-One bell of this recently formed N.J. Welterweight State Championship title, Young (20-2; 6 KOs) wasted no time in asserting dominance. He landed a pair of powerful shots to the face of Rodriguez, who alternated between reciprocating and merely attempting to reciprocate, however aggressively, however unsuccessfully.

One notable but wild shot from Rodriguez missed yet no doubt would have stung Young if he had effectuated that desired fist-to-face connection.

“Juice,” however, dramatically if not with a hint of comedy feigned relief by slowly pretending to wipe his brow with his glove.  

Young soon after floored Rodriguez, albeit momentarily, and the first ended with both boxers solidly remaining in contention. In the next round, a resurgent Rodriguez reminded Juice it was not too late to get squeezed, connecting multiple punches to the face and body of Young, who appeared unfazed.

Over the next few rounds, a cadre of Rodriguez supporters in the audience repeatedly screamed “Watch out for his right! Watch out for his right!” It was a wise warning, particularly in the fifth when Young unleashed a battering barrage of blows that simultaneously demonstrated his vast endurance while exposing its limits.

This level of intensity, impossible to sustain indefinitely, was unmatched out of all ten Boardwalk Boxing bouts. Understandably, it also slowed Young’s punching pace.  Clearly exhausted and potentially vulnerable,  Juice nonetheless hit Rodriguez not only powerfully enough to deliver him to the canvass, but to send him tumbling end-over-end.

“The Beast” got to his feet and made a last-ditch effort to survive, but “Juice” immediately overwhelmed the wobbly and befuddled Rodriguez, who then stumbled into the ropes. The ref stopped the fight at the 1:12 mark of the sixth, and Anthony “Juice” Young was then crowned N.J. Welterweight State Welterweight champion.

Heavyweight Bout

Quian Davis (6-0; 2 KOs) of Vineland, N.J. from the start of this 4-round bout exhibited signs he might dominate  Larry Knight (3-17; 1 KO) of Birmingham, Alabama. Knight was no pushover, but he simply could not connect enough punches to be considered a viable threat. Unsurprisingly, Davis emerged victorious by way of unanimous decision.

Middleweight Special Attraction

Although Chris “Sandman” Thomas of Toms River, NJ, emerged victorious after six rounds by way of unanimous decision over Joe Hughes of Indianapolis, significant grumbling simultaneously emerged from the audience. Thomas (12-0; 7 KOs), who failed to make weight and literally had a sizeable advantage over Hughes (6-2; 4 KOs), was the target of derision from some audience members, several who lamented—in their opinion—the purported inadequacy of Sandman’s punching technique. Thomas, taller than his opponent, repeatedly leaned over and onto him clearly to further wear him down. The ref deducted a point for doing so, but Thomas maintained a narrow but wide enough margin point to secure the win.

Super Middleweight Bout

Gabriel Pham (10-1; 4 KOs) of Pleasantville, NJ, by way of TKO defeated Ronald Montes (18-12; 16 KOs) of Barranquilla, Colombia. Though appearing to be equals in the first, the start of the second prominently featured Pham slamming a sequence of rights into Montes, who returned the favor with some solid shots of his own.  After a brief delay following the third, Montes swiftly departed as the announcer stepped into the ring to declare Pham the winner.

Light Heavyweight Bout

Although scheduled for eight rounds, officials after four full rounds suddenly stopped the fight between Frederic Julan (11-0; 8 KOs) of Brooklyn, N.Y., and Milton Nunez (35-22) of Miami. Considering there was minimal action worthy of mention, it remains unclear why the fight was halted.

Middleweight Bout

Jersey City’s Robert Terry remains undefeated (3-0) after beating Roanoke, Virginia’s Albert Delgado (0-7-4) by way of unanimous decision after four rounds. Each of the three judges scored the contest 40-36.

Welterweight Bout

Yurik Mamadev (11-1; 3 KOs) of Brooklyn, N.Y. early in the bout exhibited an edge over  Jordan Rosario (3-7) of Jersey City, whom he peppered with a trio of left hooks but little else significant enough to warrant specific mention.  Rosario in the sixth briefly let loose an unexpected combo of shots that feasibly could have altered the outcome of the match; in the final seconds of the fight, however, Mamadev unleashed a brief battering of his opponent that seemed to say, “See, I told you I was on top.” All three judges score the fight 60-54 and Mamadev emerged victorious by way of unanimous decision.

Super Featherweight Bout

This “Garden State Battle,” as announcer Mark Fratto put it, pitted Andrew Bentley (5-3) of Jersey City against Vidal Rivera (9-1; 5 KOs) of Camden. Bentley early in the bout conveyed authority over the ring. Rivera in the second landed multiple shots which, at best, briefly stunned Bentley, who soon after turned around and dropped Rivera to a knee prior to Round Two’s conclusion. Despite this temporary setback, a resilient Rivera briefly pounded his opponent. Nonetheless, the fight was stopped at 2:14 of the fifth due to Bentley’s accidental head butt of Rivera. As the planned six-round bout had met and surpassed the NJSACB four-round minimum, all three of the judges’ scorecards—50-45, 49-46 and 48-47—unanimously were in favor of Bentley.

Lightweight Bout

Alejandro Salinas (10-1) of Youngstown, Ohio threw the first slaps of leather of the evening in his defeat of Pablo Cupul (10-29) of San Diego. After a Salinas punch sent Cupul stumbling backwards during the fifth of, the ref stopped by the fight, thereby giving Salinas the TKO victory.

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Primal Fight Promotions Fight Night 3

By Chris Mealey, Cageside

The Robbinsville High School was roaring with energy and the need for combat as a near packed house of spectators filled the gymnasium for the third event hosted by Primal Fight Promotions. Six bouts, all of which were contests by promising amateur mixed martial artists. A story of each meeting will be told, ending with the extraordinary title fight that left the fans more than satisfied.

*Samir Zaimi vs Jarrod Musko (161 class)

Embarking on the night was the first contest between lightweights, kicking off with Musko charging in early and grappling which eventually led to a war on the ground. Each round had a close start, but it was Zaimi who scored the most points on top, landing body blows on the ground as well - cruising to a unanimous decision victory.

Seth Pattserson vs *Charles Lamantia (147 class)

Tactical start as both fighters patiently made their moves. Patterson displayed solid generalship around the cage and took chances on the outside, as Lamantia closed the distance. From the second round on to the end of the fight, Lamantia had maintained enough points through striking and ground control to earn himself a unanimous decision victory.

*Aram Monokian vs Damion Gilleo (147 class)

Both men showed no interest in backing down during this bout and for a brief time, each fighter scored on the outside through striking. A significant takedown by Monokian in the first round, with Marshall surviving with ground defense until the sound of the bell. With another big takedown in the second round, projected a similar display and almost looked like a repeat of the first. The successful wrestling by Monokian would pay off, and what looked to be the game plan from the start, was finding and securing the Arm Bar - causing Gilleo to tap out towards the end of the final round.

Chauncey Rudolph vs *Francis Marshall (168 class)

Two of the biggest warriors of the night to fight at welterweight competed in the shortest bout, that ended in a dramatic fashion. Marshall displayed brilliant ground control and did not let off after securing his leverage on the canvas. Pinning Mosley near the corner of Marshall's, would lead to constant advice in aiming for a seemingly huge target for the North/South choke, and the coaching payed off as that submission transitioned, causing Rudolph to pass out forcing the referee to stop the fight.

*Robert Mosley vs Jonathan McNatt (175 class)

Leading off with tight grappling for the first minute turned into a small brawl on the inside, as well as adequate striking on the outside by each Fighter. The first round was close and hard to score due to one take down a piece and the competitive exchanges on their feet. The second round appeared to be just as close until Mosley found huge success with the triangle choke, submitting McNatt at 1:25 of the round.

(TITLE FIGHT) Josue Del Rios vs *Adam Prieto (130 class)

Primal Fight Promotions main event was electrifying from the minute ring announcer Steve Peacock rallied the crowd, introduced the fighters, and from the time the first and final bells rang. Rios and Prieto  crash into each other,  throwing bombs for punches in the first round, with relentless tenacity that any fan would appreciate for a main event/title fight. The PFP Featherweight Title was on the line, and the warriors showed their grit continuing the action, with Prieto having the slight edge in the close, yet decisive rounds. There was a good balance of striking and ground tactics, leading to a unanimous decision victory for Adam Prieto, with one judge scoring the bout 29-28 and the other two judges both scoring the fight 30-27.

Ring Announcer and TWI Contributor Steve Peacock with Adam Prieto. Photo: Anthony Certa

Primal Fight Promotions will be holding their next event Fight Night 4 on April 27th.

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“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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Primal MMA’s reprise event unfolds Saturday in New Jersey

Primal Fight Promotions returns to New Jersey this Saturday night (11/3) for its reprise MMA extravaganza, featuring the Main Event in which Josue “The Saiyan Prince” Del Rios (3-3) defends his lightweight title against Efren “The Mexicutioner” Escareno (5-1).

Del Rios, representing Rare Breed MMA of Bloomfield, in August defeated Brett Floyd by way of unanimous decision in Primal’s premiere at The Claridge-Atlantic City.

Indeed, it was his third consecutive win—a victory streak that followed, however, three consecutive losses (Read more about his amazing comeback in our article “Despite slowcareer start, MMA fighter comes out on top.”

Escareno, representing Lionheart Modern Martial Arts of South Amboy, similarly started his career with a debut loss, but is now on a five-bout win streak. He most recently fought in May on Dead Serious 29, defeating Andrew Smith by way of armbar in the second round.

The co-main event features light heavyweights Manny Morales (1-0)—who defeated Collin Charyszyn by way of unanimous decision at the Primal premiere—and newcomer Charlie Grab.

The event takes place at Pond Road Middle School in Robbinsville, NJ (Mercer County). Doors open at 6 p.m., with the first fight slated to begin at 7 p.m. Entry: $50 General Admission or $75 VIP. Tickets are available here. 

The remainder of the bout card, in reverse order, is as follows:

6

Lightweight Bout:

Joseph Musse vs. Amir Elbanna

5

Welterweight Bout:

James Ferren vs. Kyle Hannigan

4

Light Heavyweight Bout

Pete DiFabio vs. Connor Dixon

3

Super Cruiserweight Bout

Pete Mattocia vs. Ethan Burst

2

Welterweight Bout

Ismael Rios vs. Mike Goodlow

1

Lightweight
Jorge Betancourt vs. Chris Notte

Steve Peacock

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Dozen-plus MMA fights—and ISKA lightweight title bout—slated for Triton Fights 9

The latest installment of Long Island, New York promoter Triton Fights will feature thirteen MMA bouts, including three title fights featuring a battle for the International Sport Karate and Kickboxing Association (ISKA) Lightweight Title belt.

Fighting for that belt is a pair of Triton Fights veterans: Paul “The Butcher” Thimote (4-1), representing No Limits Kickboxing and Vamos BJJ, and Dylan “The Quiet Man” Mantello (3-0), representing Longo and Weidman MMA.

Thimote this past July at TF 8 had unseated the defending ISKA champ Andrew Stock by way of unanimous decision, while Mantello at TF 7 in May defeated Chris Guariglia via round two KO/TKO.

On Friday night (Sept. 14), at The Space at Westbury Theater, Westbury New York, Thimote—coming off a four-win streak—will defend his ISKA lightweight title against the undefeated Mantello in the TF 9 Main Event.

In the Heavyweight Feature of the night, Chris “The Savage One” Bretton (1-1), representing UFC Gym, will face Robert Brothers (3-5) from Fighting Edge Gym in Florida.

Prior to the final two fights of the evening, Triton Fights proudly will unveil its “FightLyfe Sizzle Reel Premiere,” a promo film that it made in conjunction with one of its sponsors, energy drink maker TigerLyfe.

The Triton Bantamweight Title will pit Ashiek Ajim (6-1), representing Long Island MMA (LIMMA), against Commack MMA’s Christian Acerbo (2-2).

Ajim is coming off a five-win streak, four of which took place at Triton events. Acerbo’s last fight was in December, when he lost during TF 5, but about a year earlier, he secured victory by way of round one KO/TKO in a New York Fight Exchange competition.

In the Triton Featherweight Title bout, Ajim’s LIMMA teammate Mike Fitzroy (3-0) will take on Vilson Ndregjoni (1-1), representing AMA Fight Club.

The remaining TF 9 card:

Welterweight Feature
Alex Brown (2-0) v. Tom Picciano (2-1)

Featherweight Feature
Kelvin Sterling (2-1) v. Matt Santos (1-1)

Lightweight Feature
Bobby Casale (1-2) Al Pringle (1-4)

Cruiserweight Feature
Kareem Scott (2-2) v. Jerry Butler (Debut)

Women’s Strawweight Feature
Jaime Butcher (Debut) v. Lateesha Mohl (1-5)

Flyweight Feature
Sergio Rivera (0-1) v. John Ladisa (0-1)

150 lbs Catchweight Prelim
Estevinson Carmona (Debut) v. Nick Walker (Debut)

Lightweight Prelim
Isa Dalipaj (0-1) v. Gurhan Celik (1-0)

Welterweight Prelim
Rene Pereyra (1-0) v. Roman Chyzhyk (0-1)

Steve Peacock

Despite slow career start, MMA fighter comes out on top

KO'd in 2015 debut, Josue Del Rios emerges as Primal MMA champ

Josue Del Rios Celebrates his Recent UD Victory Over Brett Floyd

When a fighter gets KO’d in his debut bout—14 seconds into the first round, no less—then suffers defeat in the next two contests—the average human understandably might reevaluate his combat-sports career plans.  

But 25-year-old mixed martial artist Josue “Saiyan Prince” Del Rios, who subsequently won his next three fights—including a lightweight title belt—is not your average human being.

As fight announcer of the Primal Fight Promotions premiere on Aug. 13, this writer was amazed to watch the now 3-3 amateur MMA fighter standing in The Claridge fight cage, title belt raised above his head, smiling exultantly as hundreds of audience members cheered in salute of his victory.

Ring Announcer and Journalist Steve Peacock at Primal Fight Night 1

This scenario was surprising and yet…. simultaneously unsurprising. 

The specific outcome of the title bout was no shock, as Brett Floyd—who otherwise battled tenaciously with Del Rios—nonetheless fell short of securing the judges’ favor, who ruled unanimously against him.

But this writer three years ago also had been a first-hand witness, working as Fight Club Champion announcer, to two-thirds of the Saiyan Prince’s early career losses.

So, The Weigh-In asked Del Rios, among other questions, “How did you succeed in mustering enough tenacity and resilience to break this streak?” 

The Newark, N.J.-born-and-raised Del Rios took the time in a post-event telephone interview to explain that metamorphosis.

Del Rios admitted that along the path toward victory, there had been moments—even if just briefly—when he himself had been unsure whether to continue pursuing the MMA life. 

The Debut and Reprise Contests

Del Rios knew right away that he wanted to compete. 

After initiating training with Jerry Jones MMA of Bloomfield, N.J. when he was about 16, he first gained experience through North American Grappling Association, or NAGA, events in Pennsylvania and Delaware.

He then began training (and continues to train) at Rare Breed MMA, also of Bloomfield, and by the summer of 2015 was ready for his first public fight.

Rob “Billy” Fletcher, whose bout against Robert Cerebona had been cancelled in that Aug. 29 Fight Club Champion 5 event, became Del Rios’ opponent. 

Though not much more experienced, the 1-0 Fletcher was seeking to build upon his competition debut victory seven weeks earlier in FCC 4: an astounding five-second, round-one KO of Byron Sierra. 

As Del Rios in the past had trained with Fletcher and was familiar with his style and ability, he entered the cage prepared to win.

Nonetheless Fletcher KO’d him 14 seconds into the bout.

On the way back to the dressing room, Del Rios was puzzled as to what just happened. 

“I trained with him,” Del Rios thought. “How did he get the best of me?”

Fortunately he had a strong woman beside him: one who provided the necessary encouragement to help him pick up the pieces in this post-loss period. 

His then-girlfriend Melissa (now his wife) emphasized that the debut defeat was already behind him. Getting beaten in that bout was simply that: he lost that one bout. It did not mean he was beaten forever, Melissa told him.

Del Rios soon resumed training, ready for victory and simultaneously willing—as any great athlete must do—to risk the possibility of defeat. 

Though aiming for victory, his attitude toward future opponents was, as he put it, “If you’re going to beat me, you’re going to beat me by decision.”

Reflecting on the Fletcher-inflicted KO, he continued, “No one is going to beat me like that again.”

Josue Del Rio Enters the Cage Last Weekend

Road to Recovery 

A little less than a year later, Del Rios made plans for a reprise appearance via FCC 6 against Anthony Rosamilia, a newcomer.

Observers via Tapology.com, a website where MMA fans discuss their favorite fights and make predictions, were not hopeful for a Del Rios victory. Indeed, 92 percent of respondents predicted that Del Rios would lose—and the vast majority of them saw it coming by way of KO/TKO.

Though Rosamilia ultimately emerged victorious by way of unanimous decision, Del Rios indeed went toe-to-toe with the debut fighter and battled until the end of the three, three-minute round contest. 

Not the outcome for which Del Rios had hoped, but a step in the right direction nonetheless.

Six months later, however, when he lost his next fight at Dead Serious 23 to Phumi Nkuta—also via unanimous decision—struggle with self-doubt dangerously crept in.

“When I got my second loss, I got discouraged,” Del Rios said. “But when I lost at [DS #23 on December 10, 2016], I was devastated.” He wondered whether he could fight anymore.

One again, Melissa told him not give up.

She exhorted him to leverage those losses as a means of fueling, rather than destroying, his dreams.

Del Rios listened. 

He would take one month off, but after that he was “Training twice as hard,” Del Rios said. 

In addition to strengthening his body and sharpening his fighting skills, “The people I surrounded myself with were key,” he added.

Though still training at Rare Breed, he extended his efforts by also preparing with Miller Brothers a few days a week. He even began training at UFC Gym-New Brunswick, but cut that short solely due to a burdensome and counterproductive commute. 

“Time to push myself,” he said. 

His efforts began to pay off.

He beat James DeLillo by way of 2nd round arm bar at Ring of Combat 23 AM, about seven months after loss #3 (July 15, 2017).

Two months ago, by way of 1st round, rear naked choke, he defeated George Melendez at Extreme Cage Fighting 21.

Then on Aug. 13, Del Rios became Primal lightweight champion.

The Primal Fight Promotions Lightweight Title

The Future? 

Despite occasional doubts, Del Rios had developed habits and established a positive work ethic early on—and therefore is better prepared and eager for future growth.

“I always wanted to show that I was the best out there,” he said. “I was humble, and yet I was also filled with a competitive spirit.”

In high school, for instance, no matter if it was baseball or water polo, Del Rios was driven by a desire to perform as excellently as possible.

“My attitude was ‘I can block more shots than you can shoot,’” he explained.

He applies that competitive spirit to MMA—though admittedly needs a push from time to time. 

“Melissa has to deal with me, and help me get focused,” he said. If he’s on the computer for too long, for instance, he can count on Melissa to get him back on track.

“She always helps me focus on getting a step ahead,” Del Rios added.

Intermittent computer usage aside, Del Rios lives a life of martial-arts immersion: rather than squeezing in training when he is not earning a living elsewhere, he instead pays the bills by working as a trainer.

“My whole life revolves around training,” he said. “It always involves fitness and fighting.” He thanks pro MMA fighter Sean “Shorty Rock” Santella for encouraging him to take that training-centric approach. 

He is likewise inspired by fighter Frankie Edgar, whose entire life focuses on the sport and business of MMA. He noted how Edgar, when not fighting in the UFC, works as a trainer and also is proprietor of the Iron Army sports-nutrition and athletic-apparel company.

Del Rios now intends to “collect [title] belts” and make the transition from amateur to pro MMA fighter.

“I know I’m going to become a UFC superstar,” he said.

Primal Fight Promotion's New Lightweight Champion, Josue Del Rios

Steve Peacock

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