The Heavyweight Boxing Federation

[kenyan_cheena]

MASSACRE IN MEMPHIS:
MCVEY DESTROYS FOLLEY IN TWO!!

Monday 27 May 2002

California's Sam McVey scored an explosive 2nd round TKO of Zora Folley in the Main Event of tonight's Heavyweight Boxing Federation fight card at The Pyramid in Memphis, Tennessee. The Oxnard native put on a performance worthy of the start of the HBF World Championship tournament's important fifth series of bouts, getting the jump on his Arizona-born opponent early in round two with a series of punishing power shots that had Folley out on his feet before a crushing uppercut led referee Teddy Waltham to decide he'd seen enough, stopping the contest at the 2:43 mark.

It could not have been a more successful night for the tournament's 8th seed. As he had done in his home state debut back in March, McVey made his way to the ring to the sound of 2Pac's "California Love", decked out in a robe of gold with purple and white piping and led by his stunningly beautiful supermodel girlfriend Claudette James. She wore a figure-hugging, ankle length gold halterneck dress and worked the aisle like she was strutting down the catwalk, her smile lighting up the arena. In addition to his corner crew, McVey was accompanied by a trio of his Californian buddies: future International Boxing League Middleweight competitor James Toney, fellow HBF contender Ken Norton and Roberto Garcia, an IBL Lightweight and childhood friend of McVey's from Oxnard. Despite being country music territory, the Memphis audience accepted McVey warmly, applauding the entertaining ring entrance.

The fact that McVey was victorious was not a terrible surprise, but the manner of his victory definitely was. He had won each of his bouts against Group Eight's bottom four seeds by comfortable unanimous decision, so a TKO of Folley would not have been expected.

Yesterday, the Californian had revealed that he was apprehensive about the fight but came out all guns blazing, intent on finishing Folley early. It was a thrilling opening round, free of any kind of "feeling out" period as the two combatants traded power shots in the centre of the ring. While Folley was willing and landed his share of big hits, he was clearly on the receiving end of a fierce beating, a beating that only intensified early in round two. Before it was a minute old, McVey had tagged Folley with four separate left hooks and a jolting uppercut, punches that would have dropped lesser men. Though clearly hurt by the assault, Folley maintained his footing but it wasn't long before he was in a world of trouble. After taking a brief breather, McVey went back to work in earnest, raining lefts and rights onto the overwhelmed Arizona native. It was a left hook followed by a right uppercut that finished the bout, referee Waltham supporting Folley as he slumped down the ropes and to the canvas.

McVey celebrated wildly but briefly, quick to check on the condition of his opponent, a man who he has a lot of admiration for. Folley was understandably dazed for several minutes afterwards, but once he recovered he crossed the ring and congratulated McVey, the two men talking at length before the result was officially confirmed.

In just under six minutes of work, McVey had landed a fantastic 95 of 142 punches (67%) while Folley managed 32 of 64 (50%).

(to be continued)

[Romdawg88]

I guess I'm worried about the fight and He's a tough guy are code for I'm going to wipe the floor with him and go home and do nasty things to my hot supermodel girlfriend. Hey, if you got a tough opponent to deal with and need to win there ain't no better way then what McVey dide.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

I guess I'm worried about the fight and He's a tough guy are code for I'm going to wipe the floor with him and go home and do nasty things to my hot supermodel girlfriend. Hey, if you got a tough opponent to deal with and need to win there ain't no better way then what McVey dide.

Ain't that the truth. He flat out kicked Folley's @$$, something that I didn't expect at all. Sammy V's gonna be moving up in Vegas, me thinks.

[Romdawg88]

Originally Posted by kenyan_cheena

Ain't that the truth. He flat out kicked Folley's @$$, something that I didn't expect at all. Sammy V's gonna be moving up in Vegas, me thinks.

Yep, that was some impressive stuff Sam there in that fight. If he's stays in that form he'll be doing that to quite a few people.

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation of post #741)

"I actually gotta give my man Kenny a big thank you," said McVey after. "See, I was gonna stick with a similar strategy to my other fights and just box the guy. But when we was trainin' last week, he just suggested that I try brawlin' for the first couple of rounds. Said Zora wouldn't be expectin' it. Well, it worked. Worked a damn treat."

"This must be a big relief to be in such a strong position," commented ESPN's Bill Farris.

McVey made an exasperated noise. "Well, I ain't relaxin'," he said. "I may have won this fight pretty easily, but Zora's still in it, man. So is Tucker, so is Arthur. Everyone saw what Johnny did to Tony T., so I ain't qualified for nothin' yet. But even if I had, my pride is stronger than that. I don't wanna see no blemishes on my record, man."

***

As McVey said in the minutes before his entourage departed the ring, "Zora's still in it". The reason why? South Africa's Johnny Arthur scored an extraordinary upset win over 25th seed Tony Tucker, coming back from being within seconds of a 3rd round TKO loss to take a 58-55, 58-54, 57-55 unanimous decision victory.

Like Folley, Arthur came into the evening with a record of 2-0-2 and in the position where a win was imperative for him to stay alive in the tournament.

Round one set the stage for the drama of what was to come as the two combatants went toe-to-toe in the centre of the ring. It was a very similar start to what would happen in the Main Event, with the exception being that it was a more even round. Even so, each judge awarded it to the Michigan-born Tucker.

Arthur maintained his pace in round two while Tucker slowed down. It appeared that a flush left hook early in the round stunned Tucker and he struggled to shake off its effects as the round progressed. Arthur returned to his corner with a spring in his step, pumping his fist in self encouragement.

But if he thought he was in control, he couldn't have been more wrong. Tucker's trainer lit a fire under him during the intermission and the big guy came out with destructive intentions, tagging the South African with a series of damaging blows. It was a controversial round, as Arthur looked incapable of continuing as the final seconds ticked away and Tucker hammered him with five unanswered shots. But the bell saved him and he wobbled back to his corner. Tucker voiced his unhappiness to referee David Harrison and looked clearly frustrated as he sat on his stool, shaking his head.

The Michigan slugger continued his impressive work into round four but will look back in hindsight and wonder why he wasn't able to dispose of his still rattled opponent. But what made his failure even worse was the moment at the end of the round, a moment that turned the bout on its head. With the last seconds ticking away, Arthur had Tucker boxed into a neutral corner and he unloaded a textbook perfect left hook that landed flush on the chin and snapped Tucker's head around on his shoulders. He crumbled to the canvas just as the bell sounded to end the round.

The audience greeted the knockdown with a howl of approval but seeing as the round was over, under HBF rules there was no need for a count to be administered. Tucker appeared stunned, but was able to convince Harrison that he was fit to continue. The 25th seed wore a perturbed expression and his cornermen tried to jolt him out of the haze, splashing water in his face and slapping his face.

But the knockdown had done its job. Tucker more or less sleepwalked through the final two rounds, allowing Arthur to take them in dominant style. Tucker looked like he'd rather be anywhere else and when he was sent to the canvas for a second time, thirty seconds from the final bell courtesy of a wicked body shot, it was clear that his chances of maintaining his perfect record had evaporated.

The verdict was greeted with applause and Arthur's corner reacted like he'd just been crowned World Champion. He was paraded around the ring on his trainer's shoulders, flexing his biceps and thumping his chest ecstatically. Tucker sat on his stool, a towel covering his head.

"I came in here with positive thoughts," said Arthur. "I never considered that I would lose this fight, because that would mean my chances in the tournament are over and I never want to think about that. From day one, my belief has always been that I can progress to stage two and this win will really help me achieve that."

Arthur was asked how he was able to recover from the beating Tucker unleashed on him in round three. The South African just shook his head and placed his hand over his heart.

"It's in here," was all he said, his voice cracking as the realisation of his achievement started to overwhelm him.

***

Besides being an astonishing victory, Arthur's win has kept the fight for progression out of Group Eight alive and kicking. If he had lost, both he and Zora Folley's chances would be done and dusted but his win sees the group standings look like this:

1st: 1(8) Sam McVey, 5-0-0(1)
2nd: 2(25) Tony Tucker, 4-1-0(1)

3rd: 4(57) Johnny Arthur, 3-0-2
4th: 3(41) Zora Folley, 2-1-2

In series six, Tucker and McVey will face off, as will Arthur and Folley. If Tucker can manage to defeat the 8th seed, it will secure a birth in stage two for himself and also for McVey. But based on tonight's results, I can't see Tucker pulling it off. As they say, stranger things have happened, but it appears that things are far from settled in the race for progression in Group Eight of the World Championship tournament...

(Coming up: The Memphis Undercard)

[kenyan_cheena]

Just to add...

Although I don't list "points" in my standings, I'm using the formula that a win is worth three points and a draw one point, so in the case of Group Eight, it's like this:

McVey 15
Tucker 12
Arthur 11
Folley 8

[kenyan_cheena]

THE MEMPHIS UNDERCARD

Opening Bout

Australia's Frank Slavin consolidated the overachieving start he has made to his career, improving his record to 4-1(1) with a comfortable unanimous decision win over the 64th and last seed in the 1st Defense tournament, Detroit's Oscar Pharo. Slavin dropped his winless opponent once in round three and all three judges gave him a 60-54 verdict.

The tournament's 48th seed earned the admiration of many during the first four series of bouts, all of which he contested against opponents seeded higher than him. His only loss so far was a 3rd round TKO at the hands of Brockton's wrecking machine and the #1 seed Rocky Marciano, but his wins over Stan Ward, Scott LeDoux and Tony Galento saw him placed 2nd in Group One and tonight's result will have him staying there and in a great position to surprisingly qualify for the tournament's second stage.

"I would love to go 6-1," said the cheeky Aussie. "I know it's not always smart to look ahead, but I've got Schreck and Garcia in my last two fights. That schedule doesn't scare me, I have to say."

Preliminary 1

Those exact two fighters clashed in the evening's second bout with Garcia scoring his third victory of the tournament, a 2nd round KO of the winless and deeply disappointing Cincinnati native Mike Schreck.

After a non-descript opening, Garcia floored the 40th seed midway through round two with a single right cross. The Ohio fighter was up at three but was on the canvas again 45 seconds later, a left hook putting him down for good. Schreck was counted out at the 2:27 mark.

Now 0-5, Schreck has been stopped inside of three rounds in four of those losses, including in his last bout where he failed to land a punch against Rocky Marciano. He is surely the wost performing fighter in the HBF and it appears his stay in the federation might not extend beyond stage one of the World Championship tournament.

With the win, Garcia kept alive his hopes of progressing to the second stage. He'll finish his campaign against Pharo and Slavin and victories in both bouts should prolong his stay in the tournament.

Preliminary 2

In the first World Championship tournament bout of the night Oakland's Roger Rischer recorded his debut professional victory, defeating the stubborn 121st seed Arturo Godoy by unanimous decision (59-55, 58-56, 59-55).

Like the other bottom four seeds in Group Eight, Rischer has no chance of qualifying for the tournament's second stage but if he can pull off a few more wins, he might find himself a spot in the upcoming HBF Continental Americas Championship tournament.

Rischer is now 1-3-1 while Godoy fell to 0-3-2.

Support Bout

Alabama's Lem Franklin fought with resilience, bravery and heart during his first four tournament bouts and although he lost each of them, his efforts garnered him the respect of his opponents. Tonight he finally broke through for a victory, taking a unanimous decision (58-55, 59-55, 58-57) against Houston's Johnny Boudreaux.

Franklin set up the win with an impressive opening round where he put the Texan on the canvas with a shot to the ribcage thirty seconds from the bell. He more or less maintained control of the contest from that point on and landed some damaging blows in round five.

"It feels good to finally taste victory," he said afterwards. "Some people might think that a guy who loses four straight fights to start his career should give up, but I ain't hearing any of that. I'll be around long after these tournaments are over."

[kenyan_cheena]

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARD
MONDAY 27 MAY 2002
THE PYRAMID, MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE, USA


OPENING BOUT

HBF 1st Defense Tournament - Stage One - Group One
6(48) Frank Slavin UD6 8(64) Oscar Pharo

PRELIMINARY 1

HBF 1st Defense Tournament - Stage One - Group One
7(56) Jose Luis Garcia KO2 5(40) Mike Schreck

PRELIMINARY 2

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Eight
6(89) Roger Rischer UD6 8(121) Arturo Godoy

SUPPORT BOUT

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Eight
5(73) Lem Franklin UD6 7(105) Johnny Boudreaux

CO-FEATURE

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Eight
4(57) Johnny Arthur UD6 2(25) Tony Tucker

MAIN EVENT

HBF World Championship Tournament - Stage One - Group Eight
1(8) Sam McVey TKO2 3(41) Zora Folley

[kenyan_cheena]

MCVEY'S WIN SETS MEASURING STICK
FOR OTHER TOP SEEDS

Story by James Reynolds for the New York Age

Tuesday 28 May 2002

With last night's sensational TKO defeat of Zora Folley, California's Sam McVey raised the bar in regards to what will - from this point on - be considered an impressive performance in these Heavyweight Boxing Federation tournaments.

Having won each of his first four bouts by comfortable unanimous decision, McVey came out and did an absolute number on Arizona-born Folley, rattling his cage in round one before obliterating him in the second. It was a strategy that even the most highly regarded of boxing observers would not have seen coming and it could not have been more successful.

McVey's showing caught everyone's attention, especially the oddsmakers in Vegas who today moved the Oxnard native up to equal fourth favourite to claim the HBF's World Championship title. A victory against Tony Tucker in his next bout will clinch 1st place in Group Eight for McVey, even if he loses his final stage one bout against Johnny Arthur.

His fellow competitors will now be looking at his performance against Folley as a measuring stick of what is expected of them and that can only help to make competition in the HBF even more exciting than it's already been during the first five months of the federation's life...

[kenyan_cheena]

I wrote those last few posts while the board was down, so all I had to do now it's up was post them!

[kenyan_cheena]

JOHANSSON STEAMROLLS MAYO IN IRELAND

Tuesday 28 May 2002

Sweden's Ingemar Johansson has continued his impressive run through the Northern Europe Boxing League tournament with a strong unanimous decision victory over 4th seed Brion Mayo.

Fighting in front of a hostile Irish crowd, Johansson dominated his hometown opponent, with the judges scoring the bout 59-56, 59-55 and 60-54. Both men came into the contest sporting 3-0 records but after offering up some promising resistance in the opening two rounds, Mayo crumbled in the face of Johansson's relentless offense. Not even his fellow Irishman, who voiced their support in boisterous chorus, could help to swing the tide.

The win was Johansson's second in a row against an Irish opponent, with both (Bran Baggett and Mayo) being undefeated beforehand. Johansson's record is now 4-0(2) and it's quite evident that he is a class above the rest of the competition in the league.

***

It wasn't all bad news for Ireland, though. Fighting in the Co-Feature, 22 year-old 3rd seed Artuir Claffey moved into 1st place in Group B with a unanimous decision win over 2nd-seeded Denmark native Flemming Ekelund.

As in the Main Event, this was a bout between two fighters with perfect 3-0 records. But unlike the Main Event, it was a much more even and thrilling contest, with the two combatants putting on a great show for the Walsh Park audience.

The opening two rounds were split, with Claffey dominant in the first before Ekelund fired back in the second. Round three would prove to be the best of the contest, an action-packed three minutes where neither man could be said to have held an edge, before they took what was an almost necessary breather early in the fourth.

To the audience's delight, they traded heavy leather as the round drew to a close and picked up where they left off in round five. It was a tough contest to judge as each fighter was having definite moments, but a look at the eventual cards would reveal that Claffey enjoyed a one point lead on two cards and a three point lead on the other going into the final stanza.

It was there in round six when he really stepped up. Starting the round aggressively, he floored Ekelund for the first time in his career exactly halfway through with a barrage of lefts and rights. The #2 seed was up at five but he did little more than survive as the final minute of the contest ticked away.

When the verdict was revelaed, it was greeted with thunderous applause: Claffey by unanimous decision, 58-55, 59-54, 58-55.

UNDERCARD ACTION

Although Claffey now sits in 1st place in Group B, he'll still need to beat or draw with Norway's Olaf Heiberg in his final bout to guarantee a spot in the tournament semi-finals.

Heiberg was much better than the verdict indicated in recording a split decision victory (59-55, 56-58, 60-54) over Charles Bradley earlier in the night, improving his record to 3-1(1).

5th seed Bran Baggett struggled early before rallying late to salvage a draw during his bout with England's Richard Dunn (57-57, 58-56 (Dunn), 57-57). Having lost to top seed Ingemar Johansson in his last outing, Baggett will now have to defeat fellow Irishman Brion Mayo in his final bout to secure a semi-finals birth.

The night started with a pair of contests featuring 0-3 fighters. In the opener, Switzerland's Rostand Plan defeated Detroit's Charlie Jordan by unanimous decision (60-54 on all three cards) before 10th-seeded West Virginia native Tunney Hunsaker took a majority decision against England's Charles Moreck (58-56, 57-57, 58-56).


SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARD
TUESDAY 28 MAY 2002
WALSH PARK, WATERFORD, MUNSTER, IRELAND

THE NORTHERN EUROPE BOXING LEAGUE


OPENING BOUT

(8) Rostand Plan UD6 (9) Charlie Jordan

PRELIMINARY 1

(10) Tunney Hunsaker MD6 (7) Charles Moreck

PRELIMINARY 2

(6) Olaf Heiberg SD6 (11) Charles Bradley

SUPPORT BOUT

(5) Bran Baggett D6 (12) Richard Dunn

CO-FEATURE

(3) Artuir Claffey UD6 (2) Flemming Ekelund

MAIN EVENT

(1) Ingemar Johansson UD6 (4) Brion Mayo

[kenyan_cheena]

MASTERFUL:
LANGFORD DOMINATES STEWART,
WINS BY UNANIMOUS DECISION

Wednesday 29 May 2002

On Monday night, California's Sam McVey ushered in series five of the Heavyweight Boxing Federation's World Championship tournament with a brilliant 2nd round TKO of Zora Folley. That performance has been spoken of in the two days since as a "new standard" or a "measuring stick". It was said yesterday that McVey had thrown down the gauntlet to the other top contenders in the tournament.

Well, if McVey's effort on Monday was sensational, the one produced by Canada's Sam Langford tonight was simply masterful.

In the Main Event of the Cox Pavilion, Las Vegas fight card, Langford scored a 60-55, 59-55, 60-55 unanimous decision victory over England's Alex Stewart. In doing so, the 5'8" pocket rocket re-affirmed his status as one of the leading favourites to capture the inaugural HBF World Championship.

The seat-of-his-pants start that Stewart has made to his career has been widely documented, but against the World Championship tournament's #9 seed - and with the exception of an even second round - he was never in the game. As has been the case in his previous bouts, Langford entered the ring adorned in his national colours of red and white, his trunks solid white with thin red trim while Stewart wore black and gold.

After a quiet first two minutes, Langford put his foot down, stunning Stewart with a vicious uppercut and then a crushing three punch combo to take the opening round. Round two was the only one in the entire fight where Stewart looked capable of matching it with his dynamic opponent, who had weighed in at a ripped 185 pounds yesterday. Again, it started slowly as both men measured their punches, but Stewart landed a couple of jolting uppercuts before Langford evened out the ledger in the final minute with a series of sharp scoring jabs.

In round three, Langford didn't wait. He went to work from the bell, peppering the Englishman with crisp jabs and pounding his body with left and right rips before Stewart halted the assault momentarily with another big uppercut. Langford responded immediately, tagging Stewart at will with variety and then power, a smashing uppercut snapping the 40th seed's head back.

The fourth found a lull in the action but the Canadian showed that he was the hungrier fighter by finishing strongly, catching Stewart flush with a perfect counter right as the final seconds of the round ticked away. Not much changed in round five, with the exception of the look of absolute frustration that had come to Stewart's face. He was having next to no success in hurting Langford or even scoring regularly and appeared to know it. When he left his stool for the final round, a resigned gaze showed on the Londoner's face.

Once again, Langford unleashed a punishing barrage, demonstrating that he could have easily gone another six as he continued his strong work. Stewart's only highlight was another jolting uppercut, thrown late in the round and followed up by a solid straight right. But it was too little, much too late and the bell sounded with Stewart leaning on his smaller opponent, exhausted.

The verdict surprised no one, and the punch totals for the bout reflected Langford's dominance:

Langford: 185/362
Stewart: 59/172

(to be continued)

[Romdawg88]

Uh, do you think you can send a memo to the number 1 seeds and let them know it's ok to have a competitive fight.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Uh, do you think you can send a memo to the number 1 seeds and let them know it's ok to have a competitive fight.

LOL I'll see what I can do.

I have to say that Langford is now just about my favourite fighter in the entire HBF. I'm really hoping he can go all the way and then defend the title against Marciano.

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

"I was probably a bit fortunate," said Langford. "Alex didn't have the best strategy tonight. He stood right in front of me, made himself an easier target. I was able to tee off on him at will. You know I'm not one to sing my own praises, but it was obvious to me from early on that he couldn't handle my speed."

The Canadian was asked if he felt his path to stage two of the tournament was now secure.

"Most definitely not," replied Langford, shaking his head. "My Irish buddy Tom Sharkey won't make it easy for me. If he beats me and Alex can get a win over Joey Baksi, that makes it very close. I just have to focus on the things that will help me be successful. Every day is a new opportunity to honor our Lord with our actions and deeds, and that's more important to me than anything."

Stewart was a long time back in the dressing room before the interviewer was finished with Langford, but if he had still been in the ring he would have spoken about the wake-up call that the Canadian gave him tonight. Just scrapping by won't be enough for Stewart anymore. He'll have to push himself beyond what he has shown to this point if he wants to progress to the second stage of the World Championship tournament.

Langford remains undefeated and perfect at 5-0(1) while Stewart falls to 3-1-1.

WARD GOES THE DISTANCE WITH MARCIANO

In the days leading up to tonight's event, one of the more popular bets being offered by Las Vegas bookmakers was on the chances of Sacramento's Stan Ward becoming the first competitor to survive beyond the third round against "The Brockton Blockbuster" Rocky Marciano.

The 1st Defense tournament's #1 seed had defeated each of his first four opponents within three, including an opening round stoppage of Mike Schreck in his last bout. Some agencies were offering 20-1 for Ward to make it to round four and as much as 70-1 for him to last the distance.

Well, anyone who put money down on those odds will be enjoying themselves right now, as Ward became not only the first man to take Marciano into round four, but also the first to last the distance with him. At the same time, he brought a seemingly abrupt end to Marciano's career-start stoppage sequence.

Of course, the Massachusetts native was a comfortable unanimous decision victor, taking the verdict by scores of 60-54, 58-56 and 60-54. He worked well in each round but unlike in his previous bouts, was unable to land that killer punch that had signalled the beginning of the end for his other opponents.

Ward is the 24th seed in the tournament but had been disappointing up to now, accumulating only a 2-2 record against Group One's bottom four seeds. But he will have no doubt earned some respect for the way in which he stood up to Marciano. He took some big shots but never really looked like he was in danger of tasting the canvas. He even managed to land a high percentage of his punches, as the totals show:

Marciano: 163/509 (32.0%)
Ward: 122/188 (64.9%)

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

Of course, those totals also show that Marciano outworked Ward to the tune of an almost 3:1 ratio. The #1 seed spoke of his satisfaction during the post-fight interview.

"It was nice to go six rounds," said Marciano. "I wanted to have a good workout because it's something that I'll need to be prepared for as the tournament progresses."

"We know that it will just get tougher with each subsequent fight," said Marciano's trainer Allie Colombo. "I think Rock will really benefit from tonight, 'cause it gives us an idea of how far along he is in his fitness. I think he came through with flying colours myself."

"I have to congratulate Stan on a gutsy performance," added Marciano. "He took some big shots and just stood his ground, kept coming back for more. He showed a lot of resilience and heart and I hope he can find success as his career progresses."

THE COX PAVILION UNDERCARD

Opening Bout

In a fight between two men who had won all of their bouts by stoppage and one that was crucial to the progression chances of both, New Jersey's Tony Galento scored a 6th round knockout of Scott LeDoux. It was undoubtedly the best performance of his career to date. Galento almost stopped his Minnesota-born opponent during a brutal round two and then again in the third, where LeDoux was floored by a single right cross 34 seconds in.

After weathering a fourth round LeDoux rally, Galento was back in control in the fifth and then put his opponent away for good with a flurry of shots a minute into the final stanza.

LeDoux was counted out at the 1:04 mark and saw his record drop to 3-2(3) while Galento improved to the exact same 3-2(3) mark.

Even so, both men face an uphill battle if they are to qualify for stage two. Australia's Frank Slavin, who has defeated both of them and therefore holds a crucial tiebreaker, sits above them in 2nd place at 4-1. Unlike Slavin, LeDoux and Galento have both yet to clash with top seed Rocky Marciano. With only two bouts left in stage one, I don't fancy either man's chances of passing the Australian.

Galento will take on Marciano in five weeks. Barring a monumental upset, his 1st Defense tournament campaign will be officially over when that evening is through.

(to be continued)