Sweet taken out of ‘Candy Man’ Hardy by resurgent Eastman

By Avenash Ramzan

It was billed as ‘youth versus experience.’ Many expected youth to prevail over experience. On judges’ card it did, but in actuality, the young undefeated Simeon ‘Candyman’ Hardy produced a lacklustre performance and was given a boxing lesson by the accomplished and resurgent Howard ‘Battersea Bomber’ Eastman in the main event of the ‘Invasion of the Park’ boxing card on Saturday evening.

A sparse, but vocal crowd, left the Thirst Park ground in the wee hours of Sunday morning with a bitter taste in their mouth, after ring announcer Ian McPherson declared that the judges scored the junior middleweight contest 78-75, 75- 5, 79-71 in favour of Hardy.
Many deemed it a controversial majority decision for the 24-year-old Hardy, who maintained his unbeaten record, and a harsh verdict for the 41-year- old Eastman, who brought decades of experience to the fore, dictating the pace of fight during the last six of scheduled eight rounds.
Weighting in at 158 pounds, five more than Eastman, Hardy started aggressively, hitting his much slimmer opponent with a barrage of punches to the torso. Much of same continued in round two, as Hardy searched unsuccessfully for an opening to land his patented ‘Chin Checker’ punch, which has brought him success in his short career.
Eastman began to work himself into a rhythm in round three, using his jabs and combinations to good effect, as Hardy, who suffered a cut above the left eye in the previous round, was being tested for the first time in the contest.
However, Eastman was often guilty of hitting behind the head, forcing referee Franklyn Brisport to issue a warning mid-way through the round.
Round four emerged as arguably the most exciting of the bout, with Hardy’s signature punch connecting well, flooring Eastman early in the round. That sprang the crowd to life, and Eastman retorted again by hitting Hardy behind the head, once again forcing the referee to intervene.
The dirty tactic employed by the ‘Battersea Bomber’ clearly incensed the ‘Candyman’, who responded with several combinations, but Eastman was equal to the task, answering with some telling body blows during the final seconds of the round.
Thereafter, Eastman looked like the Commonwealth champion of old as he relentlessly attacked Hardy’s upper body, while shrugging off what his opponent had to offer.
A crunching right hand jab from Eastman had Hardy seeking respite on the ropes in round seven, as the veteran of 56 fights proved that his career may be far from over.
Before the start of the final round, Eastman raised his hands in triumph walking around in his corner of the ring, as Hardy sat on his stool trying to regain his composure. At the commencement of the last round, Hardy came out looking to connect the ‘Chin Checker’, but his efforts were thwarted by a seasoned Eastman, who continued to land crucial body blows.
At the sound of the final bell, the majority of the crowd was shouting ‘Eastman! Eastman!’ The general feeling was the ‘Battersea Bomber’ had done enough to gain the judges’ nod. McPherson’s subsequent announcement however, was met by loud roars of disapproval, even as the ‘Candyman’ basked in the glory of another triumph with his fans.
With the win, Hardy improved to 10-0 with seven knockouts, while Eastman slipped to 46 wins (37 kos) and 11 defeats.
In the main supporting bout, Edmond DeClou continued his climb in the middleweight division with a clinical TKO over an out-of-sorts Jermin King.
The reigning national and CABOFE middleweight champion forced King to ‘throw the towel in’ before the start of the sixth and final round, as he completely annihilated his opponent, who threw wild punches at will.
On the undercard, Charlton Skeete gained an unlikely victory when Richard Williamson was disqualified one minute, 45 seconds in the opening round for hitting Skeete while he was on his knees on two separate occasions; Clive Atwell earned a TKO over Orlon Rogers in their six-round featherweight contest; and Mitchell Rogers gained a unanimous decision win over Anthony Augustine in a six-round heavyweight fight.
The card was a collaborative effort of ‘Hurry Up’ Promotions and the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC).