–Blackman on ProAm card Moses stunned by Lazano; Marques dominates
By Avenash Ramzan
Chalton Skeete crouches as Elton Dharry gets an upper cut in
Any hopes Chalton ‘Fighting Raja’ Skeete had of creating a major upset was quashed almost instantaneously when he was met by a rampaging Elton ‘Coolie Bully’ Dharry in their Bantamweight clash on the 22nd edition of Friday Night Fight ProAm Boxing card at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.
Joining Dharry in winner’s row were Dexter Marques, who earned a sensational second round knockdown of Barbados’ Ricardo Blackman at Bantamweight; Venezuela’s Ana Lazano, who completely outboxed Guyana’s Mandessa Moses at Super Featherweight; Jermin King, who notched up his maiden win-a hard fought Unanimous Decision over Troy Lewis; and Anson Green, who defeated fellow debutant, David Thomas.
The 26-year-old, USA based Dharry was attacking from the onset, punishing a frail Skeete with a barrage of combinations that had him floored early in the opening round.
Though Skeete, who boasted that he had what it takes to beat Dharry at the pre-fight press conference, managed to get back to his feet, it would prove a decision to his detriment.
When the referee signaled the restart of the contest, it was the CABOFE Bantamweight champion Dharry who was first out of the corner, looking to dictate the pace.
After sizing up his opponent for a few seconds, Dharry unleashed a vicious right hand that connected the mid-rib area of Skeete, forcing him to take comfort on the canvas. As Skeete tried desperately to regain his footing, but to no avail, Dharry was visibly upset, kicking the ropes despite the victory, as he suffered a gaping wound on the forehead- the result of an accidental head butt.
The contest was over one minute, 24 seconds into the opening round, and as the referee lifted the hand of Dharry in the signal of triumph, Skeete remained on bended knees as he received medical treatment for a slipped right shoulder.
In the other Bantamweight clash of the evening, ‘The Kid’ Marques produced a clinical performance, knocking down a dreadlocked Blackman twice in the second round with a pair of solid right hand to the nose.
While the opening round did not produce much action, it was round two that had the fireworks. Blackman hit the canvas early in the round after a brutal right hand to the nose that had him in trouble.
Stunned and dazed, a brave Blackman opted to continue, but was given the same treatment mere seconds after as Marques sensed his opponent was down and out. The referee stopped the contest two minutes, 05 seconds (02:05s) into the round to hand Marques the win.
In the lone female encounter, Lazano made a terrific start to her professional career with an easy win over an ordinary Moses.
Moses’ best round was the opening one when her left jab connected with regularity, but thereafter, it was Lazano all the way.
The much stronger and bigger built Lazano dictated the pace of the remaining five rounds, even as Moses was often guilty of ‘holding’ to avoid a potential knockdown.
By the end of the contest, Moses looked jaded and despondent, while Lazano seemed as though she was just beginning to warm up.
In the other two professional encounters, King earned a 40-36, 40-36, 39-37 win over Lewis, who was a late replacement for Trinidad and Tobago-based Iwan Azore, who missed his flight, while Green had a 39-37 advantage on all the judges’ card against Thomas.
On the amateur side, Jamal Eastman had a majority decision win over Kurt Allicock; Travis Hubbard won all the judges’ card against Dewani Lampkin; Richard Williamson earned a majority decision over Terrence Adams; and the referee was forced to stop the contest two minutes, 19 seconds (02:19s) into round two between Burt Brathwaite and Kishan Simon with the former getting the judges nod.
