The Heavyweight Boxing Federation

[kenyan_cheena]

HAYNES "READY TO DESTROY" IN MANILA

Thursday 16 May 2002

Accompanied by (amongst others) fellow Florida Alliance member Tommy Gomez, Terone Haynes arrived in the Philippines today for next Thursday's South-East Asian Boxing League fight card. Dressed in baggy jeans and a white Everlast sweater, with something of a scowl on his countenance, Haynes looked an imposing, intimidating sight as he and his entourage made their way through Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

It's been an eventful time for the Florida Alliance since Haynes TKO'd Kalolo Umaga four weeks ago. In those intervening days, the other three members of the quartet have been a combined 1-1-1(1) and Haynes spoke of his determination to put things "back on track" for them next week.

"Feel good, y'all," he said, running a hand over his cornrows. "I'm fitter than I was las' time, no doubt 'bout that, man. We been workin' on some new things back home, might surprise y'all. I'm ready to destroy, no doubt."

Haynes' opponent in next week's Rizal Arena bout will be the 4th-seeded Kansas native Fred Fulton, who has struggled to accumulate a 1-1-1 record so far in the league and will be coming off a surprising 4th round TKO loss to Ghana's Robert Ado, who Haynes had knocked out in two rounds back in March.

"Some people be sayin' I'm gonna kill the dude," Haynes said. "But I ain't gonna think about that, see? They sayin' the same thing 'bout Umaga an' the guy went six rounds with me. We was watchin' tapes of him and the dude got some power. Jus' ain't had much chance to use it. I be takin' him serious, man."

Haynes was eventually asked about the progress of his cousin Elmer Ray in preparation for his vital upcoming clash with Jimmy Young.

"My cuz ain't never train so hard before," Haynes said. "The kid just bustin' his ass every day, man. Jus' killin' himself. Y'all ain't gonna hear a word outta him in the lead up to the fight, see? Ain't got time for that. He be doin' all his talkin' in the ring come fight night, y'all."

"Jus' make sure y'all turn up next Thursday, man," Haynes said, smiling. "I be givin' the Filipino people a show they ain't seen in, maybe ever."

[Romdawg88]

I'll be saying a prayer for Fred Fulton's virtual health cause a pissed off Terone Haynes can't be to good for it. Something tells me that this fight is going to be brutul. I got a question what rating is Terone overall?

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

I'll be saying a prayer for Fred Fulton's virtual health cause a pissed off Terone Haynes can't be to good for it. Something tells me that this fight is going to be brutul. I got a question what rating is Terone overall?

I think he's a 10 or 11. I'll confirm that when I get home tonight, probably post his stats, too.

[Romdawg88]

Alright, sweet thanks.

[kenyan_cheena]

Romy,

Haynes is an 11 rated fighter.

Here are his stats:

ConB 12
ConS 11
HP 12
ChinKD 2
ChinKO 3
Rec 4
Res 2
Abs 2
KI 8
Agg 8
End 8
Def -2
FS 1
Ropes 1

DP 9
Con 2
Int 8
Pro 10
Punching 42
CPunch 36
Punch missed 59

Punches

Jab 10.5/9
Hook 15.25/14
Cross 9.25/9
Combo 7.25/4
Upper 11.75/10

I mentioned it earlier in the thread, but if you want to picture how the guy looks like, just picture Detroit Pistons strongman Ben Wallace with his cornrows.

[Romdawg88]

Alright, thanks man I'm glad I'll probably end up with the Alliance so I don't have to worry about fighting the big fella there.

[kenyan_cheena]

Coming up in the HBF:

!!!

[Romdawg88]

AHHH, what does !!! mean. Now, I'm all curious as to what could happen I'm thinking a possible upset or Shavers flips out and kills someone during a press conference. Hm, could the Florida Alliance suffer another blow and have Terone get stopped, I'm interested in finding out.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

AHHH, what does !!! mean. Now, I'm all curious as to what could happen I'm thinking a possible upset or Shavers flips out and kills someone during a press conference. Hm, could the Florida Alliance suffer another blow and have Terone get stopped, I'm interested in finding out.

Patience, my friend.

[kenyan_cheena]

MASON UPSETS SHARKEY,
MOVES TO 1ST PLACE IN GROUP FIFTEEN!

story by Michael Clarke for the Grand Rapids Courier

Saturday 18 May 2002

Going into last night's Van Andel Arena fight card, the standings in Group Fifteen of the HBF's World Championship tournament were suffering from a congestion unseen anywhere else in the entire federation. With FIVE competitors tied for the group lead sporting 2-1 records, the event was supposed to make the situation a little clearer. But as you'll see, it merely added to the chaotic nature of the group.

I'll cover the card's earlier contests later in this article, because the most surprising happening on the night took place in the Main Event when Boston's Jack Sharkey fell to his second career loss, becoming the only #1 seed in either of the federation's main tournaments to lose twice. His conqueror was the Englishman Gary Mason, who also brought about an HBF first as he is now the only fighter to have recorded wins against the top two seeds in his group. In addition, he now finds himself sitting in 1st place in the group standings and is the only fighter seeded lower than #4 to lead his group.

Mason sensationally TKO'd Argentina's Oscar Bonavena in two rounds in the 18th seed's homeland five weeks ago and last night he scored an ugly unanimous decision win over Sharkey, with each judge giving him the verdict by the score of 58-57.

Make no mistake, for the majority of the duration it was an unimpressive contest with the hot and cold Sharkey putting on a display similar to the incompetent one that saw him lose his debut bout to Arthur Pelkey. Coming out like an insane bull, the 15th seed had completely run out of steam by the end of the third round and was unable to mount any offense of note in the bout's bottom half.

The Englishman did not look much better, although he was clearly the superior fighter in the second and fourth rounds, rocking Sharkey with some punishing shots.

When it was all over, Mason had landed just 90 of 194 punches while Sharkey had connected with 107 of 211. Sharkey landed over half of his shots in the opening two rounds, while Mason's work was more evenly distributed. When the verdict was announced, Mason fell to his knees, hands raised in the air as his corner men mobbed him in jubilation. Sharkey simply stood in his corner shaking his head, seemingly unable to comprehend that he had lost again.

"I said last month that I would do whatever I had to to improve my chances of victory," said Mason. "I think that I trained better for this bout than for any of the others, really put myself through some torture to get my body ready for it. I focused only on being positive. I didn't entertain losing this bout and I think that helped my performance. But saying that, I know that he gave me a little bit of help by starting so crazy. He was just sucking 'em down there in round three. When I saw that, I knew I had a good chance."

Mason's unexpected 3-1(1) career start has put him in the box seat to surprisingly qualify for the World Championship tournament's second stage, with his remaining three stage one bouts all against competitors seeded lower than him. It goes without saying that he'll make sure to be ready for those supposedly less difficult but no less important contests.

(to be continued)

[Romdawg88]

Ouch, tough break for Sharky there. He's got to be the most disapointing fighter in this whole thing, how the heck does a number 1 seed sport a 1-2 record and stands a chance not to qualify thats horrible.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Ouch, tough break for Sharky there. He's got to be the most disapointing fighter in this whole thing, how the heck does a number 1 seed sport a 1-2 record and stands a chance not to qualify thats horrible.

Just wait until I reveal the undercard and the Group Fifteen standings. His situation is even more dire than you would believe...

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation of post #690)

The way the card started should have given the audience an idea that they were in for an unusual night, as both of the 1st Defense tournament bouts were won by the lower seeded fighter.

With everything to play for, Ireland's Peter Maher just didn't show up. He produced a horrible performance in going down to the formerly winless Brooklyn native Kevin Isaac by unanimous decision in a contest that in hindsight was even more underwhelming than the main event.

The first round was somewhat lively, but it was followed by a pair of sleepers before Isaac had the Irishman staggered late in the fourth. But the bout ended with a whimper as neither man was prepared or seemingly able to give their all in the final rounds.

How a fighter who was in a position to maintain contact with the top two in his group could come out and be so terrible is beyond my comprehension. But it happened and as a result of the 60-54, 58-56, 60-54 defeat, Maher has more or less destroyed his chances of progressing in the tournament. Now with a record of 2-2, the 31st seed is yet to fight Group Two's top two seeds, Marvin Hart and the impressive James Jeffries.

That disappointing opener was followed by a contest that featured twice the action of its predecessor. But it also featured another sub-standard showing by a competitor with everything to fight for. Welshman Johnny Williams brought a 2-0-1 record into the evening but he was completely dominated by the Californian Jack Roper.

Like Isaac before him, Roper was winless at 0-3 beforehand but by the time the third round was over, victory was firmly in his grasp as he overwhelmed Williams with aggression and power. The Welshman rallied briefly in the fourth but offered little in the last two rounds. The judge's scorecards gave a fair indication of the ease of Roper's victory, with each awarding him a 59-55 verdict.

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

The evening's third bout saw Massachusetts native Ted Lowry score his second consecutive victory, taking a clear cut unanimous decision verdict (59-55, 60-54, 59-55) against Pennsylvania's Alonzo Johnson. It was an at times exciting affair, especially in rounds three, five and six, but Lowry was clearly the better man.

In moving to 2-2, the 50th-seeded Lowry has, like almost everyone else in the group, put himself in the picture for a chance to progress, but he'll need to score at least a couple of victories during the next three vital series of bouts, in which he'll face each of the top three seeds in the group.

The two bouts that followed Lowry's success would prove to be the best of the night, with Atlantic City's Bruce Seldon blowing a chance to move into a tie for 1st place when he was defeated by Canada's Arthur Pelkey in a thriller.

Brimming with confidence following his defeat of Alonzo Johnson in April, Seldon came into the ring relaxed, smiling and clowning with his corner crew. He appeared to have the better of the opening round, working strongly in its bottom half before having the smile wiped from his face when he was sent to the canvas late in the second. With the round winding down, Seldon seemed to shut off and Pelkey caught him and stunned him with a lunging right hand. A follow up left hook/straight right combo put Seldon on his backside three seconds from the bell and as he made his way back to his corner, the New Jersey native wore an irritated scowl.

Spurred into serious action, Seldon came out and dominated the next two rounds, tagging Pelkey with numerous power shots and combinations. Going into the fifth, he appeared to be in complete control but the contest took a dramatic turn when Seldon found himself on the canvas a minute into the round from a body shot that sucked all the air out of him. He was up quickly, shaking his head disappointedly. From that point on, Pelkey was in control, building on the momentum of the knockdown to finish the bout strongly against his suddenly gun shy opponent. Seldon had little to offer in the final stanza, wearing a perturbed expression as the final seconds of the bout ticked away.

When the verdict was revealed, it was a second tournament victory for Pelkey, with the scorecards reading 57-55, 58-54, 57-55 in his favour, the third upset of the evening.

The Canadian celebrated jubilantly, knowing that no matter what happened in the evening's remaining contests, his win had put him in a position to push for second stage qualification in the group. Seldon left the ring quickly, clearly angered with himself over losing a bout that he was in clear command of with only two rounds remaining.

Soon after, Argentina's Oscar Bonavena made his way to the ring eager and ready to atone for his shocking KO loss to Gary Mason, a loss that had been witnessed by thousands of Bonavena's fellow countrymen at the Luna Park in Beunos Aires. Atone he did, winning by unanimous decision against the determined Florida slugger Tony Alongi in the evening's Co-Feature.

Alongi is a talented fighter who was victorious in his first two professional bouts, but tonight's loss was his second straight and saw him fall back into the pack of 2-2 fighters while Bonavena guaranteed that he'd be sitting in 2nd place in the group when the night was over.

It was a fight that was every bit as competitive and exciting as Pelkey's win over Seldon, the only difference being that no knockdowns occured and that Bonavena was more of an obvious winner. Alongi tested him throughout, especially in rounds two and four. But Bonavena almost finished him in round five, a flurry with a minute to go stunning the Fort Lauderdale native. Bonavena landed at least a dozen more solid shots, but Alongi was somehow still upright when the bell sounded. If he had been able to dig deep and finish strongly, the 20 year-old might have been able to secure himself a draw, but he was all but spent and Bonavena took the round and a 58-56 verdict on each judge's card.

These earlier results, in particular Pelkey's victory over Seldon, have put Group Fifteen's top seed Jack Sharkey in a precarious position following his defeat by Mason. When published on Sunday, the group standings will look like this:

1. 5(66) GARY MASON (ENGLAND), 3-1-0(1)
2. 2(18) OSCAR BONAVENA (ARGENTINA), 3-1-0

3. 8(114) ARTHUR PELKEY (CANADA), 2-2-0(1)
4. 1(15) JACK SHARKEY (USA), 2-2-0
5. 6(82) TONY ALONGI (USA), 2-2-0
6. 3(34) BRUCE SELDON (USA), 2-2-0
7. 4(50) TED LOWRY (USA), 2-2-0
8. 7(98) ALONZO JOHNSON (USA), 0-4-0

Next up for Sharkey is a clash with 34th seed Bruce Seldon, a bout that will most definitely not be an automatic win. Sitting on top of the group, Gary Mason should improve to 4-1 when he contests the winless Alonzo Johnson while, realistically, Bonavena should be able to account for Ted Lowry. Overachieving 114th seed Arthur Pelkey will take on Tony Alongi, so one of those guys will continue to push for a top two birth.

What does it all mean? Only that things are far from settled in Group Fifteen of the HBF's World Championship tournament...

[Romdawg88]

Man, what a nutty fight card and group. I like Gary Mason's chances of moving on as his next three fights are against the lower seeds in the group, of course in this group that doesn't seem to be much of an advanage. For the second spot, I personally think it'll come down to who wins the match between Bonavena and Sharkey.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Man, what a nutty fight card and group. I like Gary Mason's chances of moving on as his next three fights are against the lower seeds in the group, of course in this group that doesn't seem to be much of an advanage. For the second spot, I personally think it'll come down to who wins the match between Bonavena and Sharkey.

You got that right. I have to say, Seldon blew it big time. He had a golden opportunity to position himself nicely. He was killing Pelkey going into the 5th and lost the bout. If he doesn't beat Sharkey, he'll be bound for the Continental Americas tournament. I think Mason is really the only certainty thanks to his easier schedule, but who knows what might happen. Gonna be exciting finding out.

[Romdawg88]

Originally Posted by kenyan_cheena

You got that right. I have to say, Seldon blew it big time. He had a golden opportunity to position himself nicely. He was killing Pelkey going into the 5th and lost the bout. If he doesn't beat Sharkey, he'll be bound for the Continental Americas tournament. I think Mason is really the only certainty thanks to his easier schedule, but who knows what might happen. Gonna be exciting finding out.

That it will be, this is easily my second favorite group in the tournment right behind the Floyd/Ray/Young group. This group won't be decided until the last fight card, is there another group in the tournment where the 7 of the 8 fighters have a legit chance of moving on.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

That it will be, this is easily my second favorite group in the tournment right behind the Floyd/Ray/Young group. This group won't be decided until the last fight card, is there another group in the tournment where the 7 of the 8 fighters have a legit chance of moving on.

No other group comes close to the congestion of group fifteen. There's a handful of ones where the guy coming 7th has a single win, but none where he has two. Also, no other division has a fighter who has lost a bout coming first. All the 1st place guys in the other groups are undefeated.

[kenyan_cheena]

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARD
FRIDAY 17 MAY 2002
VAN ANDEL ARENA, GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN, USA


OPENING BOUT

HBF 1st Defense Tournament - Stage One - Group Two
7(55) Kevin Isaac UD6 4(31) Peter Maher

PRELIMINARY 1

HBF 1st Defense Tournament - Stage One - Group Two
8(63) Jack Roper UD6 3(23) Johnny Williams

PRELIMINARY 2

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Fifteen
4(50) Ted Lowry UD6 7(98) Alonzo Johnson

SUPPORT BOUT

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Fifteen
8(114) Arthur Pelkey UD6 3(34) Bruce Seldon

CO-FEATURE

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Fifteen
2(18) Oscar Bonavena UD6 6(82) Tony Alongi

MAIN EVENT

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Fifteen
5(66) Gary Mason UD6 1(15) Jack Sharkey

[kenyan_cheena]

LISTON DISAPPOINTED DESPITE VICTORY

Saturday 18 May 2002

Minutes after his main event bout against Harold Carter had come to a conclusion, Sonny Liston apologised to the crowd at Glasgow's Braehead Arena for what he called an "unacceptable performance."

The fight had been stopped 2:13 into round four due to a bad cut over Carter's left eye, but the victory was the furtherest thing from Liston's mind.

"I'm sorry that I let you down," Liston said. "I came here tonight wanting to put on a great show for you all, and I failed."

The reaction of the audience seemed to indicate that they were more than satisifed with Liston's effort in improving his record to 4-0(4), but it must be said that it was the least impressive of his four professional bouts to date. "The Missouri Monster" started the contest nicely, winning the opening round handily against an opponent who appeared scared witless. A booming straight right late in the round was the punch that opened Carter's eye, but his cornermen did a good job of patching him up during the intermission.

What followed were two rounds in which Carter was able to successfully nullify Liston's power, getting in close and clinching whenever possible and actually presenting enough of an offense to take the third round. Liston walked back to his corner with a disgusted set to his jaw, shaking his head and actually pounding his forehead with his right hand a few times. He was clearly frustrated by his inability to hurt the New Jersey-born Carter, who had scored an unlikely 1st round TKO win against 31st seed Michael Dokes five weeks ago.

Carter had talked up his chances before that fight with Dokes, saying that he didn't like the way the Ohio native carried on and that he would "wipe that smile from his face come Saturday night". Well, Carter did that exact thing against Dokes, but as mentioned earlier, he looked scared witless tonight, like a man on the way to his execution. However, by the time the fourth round commenced he showed a more confident disposition, surely as a result of his effective work in the previous round.

Unfortunately for Carter, Liston was able to get into a groove in round four, landing a series of power shots early on and then giving the referee little choice but to halt the contest when a trio of smashing right hands re-opened the cut over Carter's left eye. Leading Carter to the ring doctor, it was quickly confirmed that the bout should be stopped and Liston was declared the winner at the 2:13 mark of round four.

(to be continued)