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Summer
Showdown 2, A Smashing Success
Promoter Andrew Stokes of Palmetto Boxing and Billy Stanick of
Whiterock Boxing put on one of the best shows ever held in the
Columbia Metropolitan area. With a standing room crowd of over 1,200
energized fans, nothing was left to chance as they pulled out all
the stops to give boxing fans a first class “Vegas Style” boxing
event. To put it mildly, they did not disappoint. Every bout on the
show was a thriller. You would be hard pressed to find an
unsatisfied fan in the building. Fans came from as far North as
Connecticut, as far south as Florida, and as far west as
Mississippi. Fans from the Midlands turned out in droves as it was
standing room only to watch some of Columbia’s up and coming hot
prospects display their talents. Sponsor banners decked the arena
high and low and special ringside banners with custom stands were
made to adorn around the ring giving special recognition to the
loyal sponsors that once again helped to make this show a smashing
success. Promoter Andrew Stokes did a masterful job of matchmaking
the bouts. Every bout on the show was a toss up as you could hear
fans in the background picking evenly who they were rooting for,
“I’ll take the red corner”, and “I’ll take the blue corner”.
Mickey Stackhouse and Derrick Buchanan started the show with a bang.
The two stood toe to toe at times unloading missile type punches
which caused Stackhouse to lose his mouth piece on more than one
occasion. The two fought to a draw and both fighters immediately
asked promoter Andrew Stokes for a rematch on his next show
Mike Rayner and Chris Cook continued the show with an exciting four
round bout that had fans on their feet wanting more. The chiseled
Mike Rayner, a crowd favorite managed to eek out a win by being the
aggressor, as he stalked the always dangerous Chris Cook and landed
thundering left hands through the fight.
Stepping to the stage next was the hometown hero Shelby, “The
Bonetown Brawler”, Gross and the tough durable Robert Marsh. Three
minutes of pure unadulterated boxing is the only way to explain this
fight as the pugilists went after each other like two pitt bulls
fighting over a steak bone. The one round fight seemed like an
eternity as both fighters exchanged power shots that could be heard
throughout the arena. Marsh finally availed as he caught Gross with
an over hand right that dropped him and caused referee Mark Campbell
to stop the exhibition.
After a short Intermission, Kenrick “The Landover Assassin” Watkins
took center stage against the 6’3” Jamel Neal from North Carolina.
Kenrick proved that he is a force to be reckoned with in the
welterweight division. He showed his boxing skills early by throwing
laser like jabs that found their mark over and over again before
finally stopping the show with cannon like body shots that left Neal
squirming on the mat before being counted out by referee Dr. Kevin
James. Watkins bout set the stage for what some fans considered the
fight of the night.
Robert Dunton and Thomas Brown entered the ring separately. Both
fighters had a healthy fan base as the cheers from the crowd drowned
out their entrance music. Both men came ready to fight. You could
tell from the emotion of the arena that this would be a fight to
remember. The bout started a little slow with both fighters feeling
each other out, but picked up quickly when the combatants tasted
each others stinging jabs and thundering power shots, the fight
would ebb and flow in the first two rounds until Brown’s experience
took over. He found an opening in Dunton’s defense and exploited it.
He landed vicious right hands, uppercuts, and left hooks. Dunton was
knocked downed twice, and refused to stay down prompting his corner
to stop the fight in the fourth, earning Thomas Brown the CBO Light
Heavyweight Title.
And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, Moultrie
Witherspoon rises out of the darkness of the dimly lighted arena.
His corner and the man himself all adorned in gold with black trim.
Hoards of fans Rushed to the isles to get a glimpse of the 6’6”
230lb soon to be CBO Heavyweight Champion as he strolled down the
isle to the sound of “The Man Right Here” by the rapper Mystical.
Waiting in the ring was another imposing figure, 6’2” 220 lb all
muscle West Taylor. The tension in the arena grew as the two
warriors faced each other in the center of the ring for pre fight
instructions. The opening round was more of a feeling out round as
both men tried to find there range. It didn’t take long for the
action to pick up. Witherspoon landed great stinging jabs despite
the good head movement by Taylor. Taylor tried to counter with left
hooks to no avail as Witherspoon’s right hand was glued to his head.
Witherspoon picked up the pace and dropped the durable Taylor twice
with blistering right hands set up by sharp jabs and powerful upper
cuts. Witherspoon finished the show in grand style by throwing a
barrage of punches until referee Mark Campbell had seen enough and
stopped the fight, Making Witherspoon the New CBO Heavyweight
Champion.
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