Upcoming North Carolina Boxing Events - July-Sept, 2014

UPCOMING NORTH CAROLINA BOXING EVENTS

Updated: July 21, 2014


SATURDAY, JULY 26 (WINSTON-SALEM): Ring of Dreams Promotions will feature Boxing. Scheduled on the card: Breon Smiley, Eric Johnson, Wes Capper, Jean Pierre Augustin, Steed Woodall, Tyrone McKenna, Jason Rorie (Winston-Salem, NC), Chris Vendola. At the South Side Community Boxing Club. 2500-A Old Lexington Road SE, Winston-Salem, NC. Call 336-669-0179 for tickets to this event.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 9 (RALEIGH): Walter Johnson Promotions features Pro Boxing. Scheduled on the card: Paul "The Italian Hitman" Marinaccio, Jamar Freeman, James Hammortree, Milton Santiago, Robert Sockwell, Shakir Dunn. Location: The Ritz Theatre. 2820 Industrial Dr, Raleigh, NC 27609.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 16 (CHARLOTTE): Promoter Jonathan K. Nazeer features "Rumble in the City", professional and amateur Boxing event. Scheduled on the card: Hector "Machito" Camacho Jr., Miguel Angel Munguia, Chris Hancock, William McElroy, Antwaun Tubbs, Jordan Chambers-Blair, Nick Elliott. (Note: Chambers-Blair and Elliott appear to be an amateur or exhibition bout). Location: Carole A. Hoefener Center, 610 E 7th St, Charlotte, NC 28202.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 23 (GREENSBORO): Walter Johnson Promotions features Pro Boxing. Scheduled on the card: Joshua "Too-Tuff" Tufte, Richie Rivers. Location: Greensboro Coliseum Complex (in the Special Event Center). 1921 W Lee St, Greensboro, NC 27403.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 23 (WINSTON-SALEM): Ring of Dreams Promotions will feature professional Boxing. Scheduled on the card: Miguel Cartagena (12-1; Philadelphia), Jonathan Cepeda (12-1; Florida), Tyrone McKenna (4-0: Philadelphia/Ireland), Rich Miller (1-0; Minneapolis), Neslan Machado (6-0; Miami, FL/Cuba). Location: South Side Community Boxing Club. 2500-A Old Lexington Road SE, Winston-Salem, NC. Call 336-669-0179 for tickets to this event.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 (CHARLOTTE): 2nd Annual First Responders Charity Boxing Event, in honor and memory of 9/11 victims. Competing against each other will be Charlotte Police Department, Charlotte Fire Department, Mecklenburg County Sheriff Department, and North Carolina Highway Patrol. The team with most wins will have portion of the proceeds given to their choice of a local charity. Revolution Park Sports Academy; 1225 Remount Road. Charlotte, NC 28208. For more information contact Coach Al Simpson at Alvin.simpson@mecklenburgcountync.gov or call 704 241-0314.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 (DURHAM): Promoter David Moore and One Hit Promotions will feature a Pro Boxing event at The Armory in Durham, North Carolina. Location: 220 Foster St, Durham, NC 27701. Further details when they become available. For ticket info call 919-401-3269

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13 (CHARLOTTE): Battle of the Carolinas Amateur Boxing Tournament. North vs. South Carolina. Location: Revolution Park Sports Academy; 1225 Remount Road. Charlotte, NC 28208. For more information contact Coach Al Simpson at Alvin.simpson@mecklenburgcountync.gov or call 704 241-0314.

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NORTH CAROLINA BOXERS OUT-OF-STATE

WEDNESDAY, JULY 23: Lightweight Noel Echevarria (11-3; Winston-Salem) vs. Patrick Hyland (27-1; New York/Ireland) at the BB King Blues Club & Grill venue in New York.

CANCELLED - SATURDAY, JULY 26: Light-Welterweight Eli Addison (11-3; Winston-Salem) vs. Dusty Hernandez Harrison (22-0; Washington, D.C.) for the WBC Youth Silver Welterweight title at Madison Square Garden in New York. Undercard bout for Gennady Golovkin vs. Daniel Geale Main Event. Televised on HBO. It is unknown if Eli Addison's bout will be included in broadcast.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 2: Heavyweight Carlette Ewell (15-7-1; Winston-Salem, NC) vs. Sonya Lamonakis (9-1-2; New York City) at the L.B. Scott Sports Auditorium in Philipsburg, Sint Maarten (Caribbean island of Saint Martin).

RESULTS: Charlotte Boxing at the EpiCenter on Saturday, July 19, 2014

On Saturday, July 19, 2014, Money Mike Promotions featured seven professional bouts that took place at the EpiCenter 210 Rooftop in Charlotte. A rainy day just cleared and seated spectators were folding their umbrellas when the first bout began at 8:00PM.

On the downside, event organizers did not issue programs with bout listings and an awful PA system was made worse by a Ring Announcer who yelled everything into the microphone at the top of his lungs. The voice distortion made it impossible to understand what he was saying or who he was introducing. If he’d spoken with his normal tone of voice, it may have been a lot clearer.

About 300 fans in attendance didn’t seem to mind, however, as most cheered and yelled throughout the event at what turned out to be a very exciting night of boxing in a setting surrounded by Charlotte’s lit-up Uptown skyline. Spectators could care less, it seemed, what the MC was saying.

The fights kicked off with two out-of-town boxers coming in at 131 pounds. Michael Robinson of Memphis, Tennessee, making his debut as a pro, was matched with Tyshae Ferguson of Virginia coming in with a record of 0-2. Robinson won every round of the 4-round bout by unanimous decision. All three judges scored it 40-36.

In the second bout, Michael Hazzard of South Carolina, in his debut, fought highly favored Stanley "The kid" Wright, who, from the sound of cheers in the crowd, appeared to have the largest contingent of fans in attendance than any other fighter on this night. Also making his debut appearance as a pro, Wright, who trains at Stanley's Pro Boxing Gym in Charlotte and is also a Mecklenburg County Sheriff Deputy, was knocked down in the first round by Hazzard, likely giving the South Carolinian a 10-8 winning round. But Wright bounced back after the referee’s eight-count and scored a high number of blows to the head of Hazzard throughout the remaining three rounds, giving Wright a 4-round unanimous decision win, all three judges scoring it 39-37.

In the next bout, James “The Fighting Fireman” Hammortree (now 5-0) of Florida defeated Sam Promonee of Charleston, South Carolina by 1st round KO. Promonee drops to 1-1.

The next two bouts featured popular North Carolina boxers fighting out of the Dyme Boxing & Fitness Gym in Charlotte, with some of the best coaches in the business in their corner, Coach James Pressley and Coach James Carr. Recent winner of the WBC Latino belt, John "Spidey" Williams, was matched against a fighter out of New York City, Joseph Figueroa, a long-time veteran journeyman entering the ring with a record of 11-53-5. Despite a significant height difference (for a moment it appeared Spidey was going to box a midget), the New Yorker turned out to be very game; a tough little bulldog that went toe-to-toe with the Dyme fighter and gave about as much as he took, occasionally landing heavy blows to the head of Williams. The fight went the six-round distance with Spidey Williams getting a unanimous decision. All three judges scored it 60-54.

Following a 15-minute intermission, Dyme fighter Jared “The Warrior” Robinson was matched against cross-town contender, Andre Baker, fighting out of Lumberton, North Carolina. Following three knockdowns of Baker in the 2nd round, mostly from vicious body punches that Robinson delivered to Baker’s left side, referee Bill Clancy called a halt to the bout. Jared Robinson’s record improves to 15-1, while Baker drops to 10-41-2.

In a heavyweight matchup, undefeated heavyweight Nat Heaven of Florida entered the ring with a record of 9-0 and wearing super-shiny blue robe and boxers (with the nickname “Heaven Sent” on the back of the robe). He faced a big heavyweight from Louisiana, Stacy Frazier, who had the same amount of wins and losses on his record (15-15). In the scheduled 6-round bout, it took just one devastating blow at 29 seconds into the first round to the head of Heaven to end the fight quickly. Heaven went down and got up on wobbly legs, forcing the referee to stop the bout. Heaven suffers his first defeat and Frazier's record improves to 16-15.

In the final fight of the evening Marselle "Cochise" Walker made his professional debut. Marselle Walker also fights out of the Stanley's Pro Boxing Gym in Charlotte. Walker faced Coy Lanbert of South Carolina (now 2-13). In the first round, Walker bloodied his opponent’s face with a series of jabs and punches landing accurately. Further combinations and continuous blows to the head in the 2nd round resulted in the referee calling a stop to the bout. Marcelle Walker, now 1-0, won by TKO.

Several in attendance were introduced by the Ring Announcer during intermission that included former North Carolina IBF Bantamweight World Champion Kelvin Seabrooks and Winston-Salem Women’s Heavyweight contender, Carlette "The Truth" Ewell. Carlette will be fighting for the vacant IBO Heavyweight title on August 2 in the Caribbean.

Other notables in attendance were boxing promoter Krishna Wainright, who was accompanied by amateur women boxer Lynn L. Holmes of Charlotte. Lynn recently won the 178-LBS 2014 National Women’s Golden Gloves Championship that took place in Florida. Charlotte boxing promoter Jonathan Kearse Nazeer came out to support the event. Nazeer, who runs JKN Boxing Promotions, will have the next boxing event taking place in Charlotte on August 16th that will include world-class contender Hector "Machito" Camacho Jr. in the Main Event. Coach Mike Kane of Mid-South Boxing and Fitness was also at the EpiCenter Rooftop, mainly to see friends from Dyme, Jared Robinson and Spidey Williams, in their respective bouts.


Paco Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk Radio & Blog
Twitter: @GAR1680


Videos of some of the bouts can be seen on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/GAR1680BoxingTalk/videos

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Fans anticipating start of bouts...and an end to the rain

 

Boxing under a magnificent Charlotte Skyline at the EpiCenter Rooftop

Stanley "The kid" Wright, Charlotte Sheriff and Pro Fighter in black & red boxers takes charge

Professional Boxing in Charlotte, North Carolina - Saturday, July 19, 2014

On Saturday, July 19, Sports Radio 610AM The Fan presents a night of professional boxing billed as Carolina Brawl that will take place at the EpiCenter Rooftop venue with a spectacular view of the Charlotte nighttime skyline.

At least 10 bouts are scheduled that will include Mecklenburg County Sheriff Deputy Stanley "The kid" Wright and recently returned Army soldier Marselle "Cochise" Walker of Charlotte making their professional boxing debuts.

WBC Latino title holder John "Spidey" Williams and Jared "The Warrior" Robinson of Charlotte, NC will also be featured on the card in separate bouts.

Undefeated Keith Tapia (12-0) of Puerto Rico will be fighting for a Cruiserweight title and John Wesley Nofire of Florida, also undefeated with a record of 14-0, will be matched in a Heavyweight title bout.

Former MMA fighter turned boxer James “Sledge” Hammortree (4-0; Florida) is also scheduled against an unnamed opponent.

The EpiCenter Rooftop is located at 210 East Trade Street, Charlotte, NC.

General Admission is $25.

For more information visit: http://www.carolinabrawl.com/

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Amateur Boxing Event in Angier, North Carolina - June 27-28, 2014

North Carolina PAL presents Battle of the States. Amateur Boxing event takes place in Angier, NC on Friday, June 27 and Saturday June 28. See promotion banner (below) for additional information.

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Report on Greensboro Boxing Event Saturday, June 7, 2014

At the Greensboro Coliseum Pavilion Saturday night, Walter Johnson Promotions featured seven bouts of boxing to about 400 fans in attendance. Seven fighters from North Carolina appeared on the card. It was only the second boxing event in the State of North Carolina this year, the first occurring in April and also promoted by Walter Johnson.

In a card billed as Saturday Night KO Fights, the first match began about 8:30PM with Welterweight Sammie Milhouse of Denmark, South Carolina improving his unbeaten record to 4-0 with a quick 1st-round TKO of his opponent, Avery Hines of Wilson, North Carolina. Hines falls to 0-4.

The second bout of the evening pitted two North Carolina boxers. Fighting as a Cruiserweight, hometown favorite Tyson Harrison (now 2-0) of Greensboro defeated Chorles Parker of Wilson. (I checked; “Chorles” is not misspelled). Parker’s professional record drops to 1-4.

The next bout, also Cruiserweights, ended quickly when undefeated Daniel Powell (now 9-0) of Columbia, South Carolina stopped fellow Columbia, SC boxer, Sean Lockhart. The fight was halted by the referee in the 1st round. Lockhart, who has been fighting since 1996, runs his loss record to 22; he's now 5-22-2.

Up next was a pair of unbeaten Heavyweights. Ernest Blackwell of Reidsville, North Carolina entered the ring with a record of 2-0 and faced James Hammortree of Florida who was 3-0.  Several minutes later the referee called a halt to the bout, giving Hammortree the 1st-round TKO win. The Florida boxer is now 4-0 and Blackwell drops to 2-1.

The final three fights of the evening turned out to be far more competitive and exciting. A North Carolina favorite from Winston-Salem, Christian Dominguez, scored a knockdown in the 1st and 2nd rounds. His opponent was tough veteran Richard Lee Hall of Rocky Mount, North Carolina, who was making his comeback. Hall came back strong in the 4th and 5th rounds with hard shots to the head of Dominguez. The final 6th Round had the crowd on their feet and cheering loudly with explosive toe-to-toe action in the Welterweight bout. In the end, the two early knockdowns likely gave Dominguez the points needed for a Unanimous Decision win. Christian Dominguez is now 7-1 and has a 5-fight win streak since 2012. Hall falls to 10-22-3. Despite Hall’s record and not having fought since 2009 (a draw against a fighter that was undefeated at the time; 13-0), Hall performed well, showing little ring rust.

Also returning from a long lay-off, hometown Cruiserweight fighter Paul Jennette of Greensboro, North Carolina faced the undefeated Puerto Rican, Keith Tapia. A 45-year-old Jennette was rocked hard by solid Tapia punches in the 1st and 2nd rounds of the 8-Round scheduled bout, and there was every indication the fight was going to end early. But Jennette seemed to recover and from the 3rd round on as he stepped up the pressure, initiated exchanges, and countered well. Tapia’s hand-speed, however, ultimately resulted in a Unanimous Decision win. Tapia improved his unbeaten record to 12-0. Jennette, who last fought in 2011, is now 11-5-1. Paul Jennette commented on his Facebook page that talks are already underway for a rematch with Tapia and that Tapia has agreed. Jennette is confident he will do much better next time.

The Main Event presented what was obviously two well-seasoned fighters when Scott “Cujo” Sigmon of Lynchburg, Virginia battled it out with undefeated Columbia, South Carolina native, 19-year-old DeAndre Robinson-Neal. Fans in attendance from both Virginia and South Carolina that came out took turns cheering their guy on during vicious back-and-forth action during the early rounds, in which Neal’s hand speed and punch count seemed superior. In the later rounds, a bloodied Cujo, bleeding from above the left eye and back of head from accidental head-butts, stepped up the attack and took advantage of a weakening Neal. Neal continued to land an occasional heavy shot to Cujo Sigmon’s head, but it did not appear to have any effect as Cujo dominated, Neal often with his back to the ropes. When the final 8th round ended, it seemed that a classic case of experience versus youth would mean a victory for Sigmon, but most fans seemed disappointed and booed the decision as two of the three judges scored the bout a Draw. A third judge scored it for Neal. On Scott Sigmon’s Facebook page he commented: “Well the fight ended in a draw. I thought I won and Deandre felt he won. At the end of the day our job is to fight, not judge…”  Sigmon’s record is now 24-5-1 and Neal 12-0-1. DeAndre Neal’s 20th Birthday was on the following day.

Earl "Chocolate Drop" Ladson of Winston-Salem vs. John Wesley Nofire of Florida was cancelled. Reports are that Nofire was injured during training.

Richard Rivers (9-0; Greensboro, NC) was also cancelled. Reports are that his opponent was unable to make weight.

 

COMMENTARY

Despite reports that several bouts ended in KO, all fights that ended early had been halted by the referee and ended officially as a TKO. A referee never counted out (to 10) a boxer, thus no KO’s occurred.

The fighters records appearing in the above story are those that appear on BoxRec.com.

Fans felt they were being held prisoner…

Fans entering the Greensboro Coliseum Pavilion venue were not issued color wrist bands allowing exit and reentry during the event. Some were told vehemently by staff, “If you leave, you can’t get back inside.” Many (mostly smokers) appeared confused at not being able to go outside during downtimes or intermission. After numerous ticket-holders in attendance complained to venue staff members, a smoking section was eventually established outside a side door. Boxing event organizers should bear in mind that while many wouldn’t sympathize with smokers wanting to indulge in an unhealthy habit, there are many who wouldn’t understand being denied that “pleasure” during an exciting night of boxing. After it was opened, the “smoking section” set up at the venue remained with a steady flow of smokers all throughout the event, even during fights (a view was possible from outside, through the windows). It is my opinion that if you tell potential customers beforehand that they won’t be allowed to exit and re-enter during a boxing event, very few will show up.

You can take pictures but no video!...

Quite a few seated patrons expressed their displeasure with not being able to video record bouts from their cell phones to share with family and friends. The Ring Announcer stated several times early on that IT IS PROHIBITED TO VIDEO RECORD any part of the event with cell phones or any electronic device; he continued by telling everyone that they already have someone video recording the event and if anyone wants they can buy the DVD. Last year, on June 13, 2013, I aired a Boxing Radio show called “The Problems with Boxing” and the situation with event organizers selling DVDs of boxing events was discussed. During the show I suggested that local promoters would likely increase attendance substantially if previous events were made freely available on video sites such as YouTube or UStream, where thousands of viewers can see with their own eyes how great the event was. “You can’t buy advertisement like that,” I had said. GAR1680 continues to support that theory. Instead, organizers continue to think they can make more money by selling some DVDs. How many DVDs do you think they will sell? Now fans are being PREVENTED from using their cell phone to video record the event. Not cool, man. Not cool. I know they have every right to set that policy. It’s actually quite common for theatrical events, and recording a movie at the cinema is considered Piracy. I’m not so sure, however, that it’s common for any sporting event organizer to deny fans personal recordings of an event. And Boxing…is a sport.

Paco Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk Radio & Blog

Twitter: @GAR1680