Blue at 07:36, 27 October 2014

2014-10-27T07:36:04Z

Blue at 07:23, 27 October 2014

2014-10-27T07:23:08Z

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 == REPORT ==
   Fights at the Fitz Results: Howard Blasts Victor in One[http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/fights-at-the-fitz-results-howard-blasts-victor-in-one-266124#more-266124]
   By Tracy Morin at ringside; FightNews Photos: Brenden Nasianceno On October 25, 2014,

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2014-10-26T22:54:10Z

Created page with " == REPORT == Fights at the Fitz Results: Howard Blasts Victor in One[http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/fights-at-the-fitz-results-howard-blasts-victor-in-one-266124#more-26612..."

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== REPORT ==
Fights at the Fitz Results: Howard Blasts Victor in One[http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/fights-at-the-fitz-results-howard-blasts-victor-in-one-266124#more-266124]
By Tracy Morin at ringside; FightNews Photos: Brenden Nasianceno On October 25, 2014,
Prize Fight Promotions hosted its latest installment of Fights at the Fitz in Tunica, Mississippi.
With the crowd buzzing, amped up by the guest appearance of former heavyweight champion James
“Buster” Douglas at ringside, the evening offered a six-card bout that showcased young undefeateds,
cagey veterans and a fair dose of drama.

The main event featured Tyler Howard (5-0, 3 KOs) and Steve Victor (1-5-1) in a middleweight bout
scheduled for six. Victor, coming off a year-plus layoff, was overwhelmed from the opening bell by
Howard’s volume, speed and aggression. A flash knockdown occurred in the first minute when Victor
fell to a knee, then took another in what was ruled a slip by ref Randy Phillips. But it wasn’t
long before Victor was back on the canvas thanks to a barrage of combinations from Howard. With
blood streaming from his nose, Victor was clearly overmatched and appeared reluctant to continue,
prompting Phillips to wave off the fight at 2:11 of Round 1.
“I started boxing at eight years old, following my father and my brother, and had 75 amateur
fights,” said Howard. “The crowd at the Fitz loved my brother, Chris, so I was hoping they’d like
me, too. We always train to go the distance and work real hard in the gym. My dad told me to just
keep the jab in his face and the knockout will come. I’m a full-time student, but I plan on
fighting five or six times in the next year. We just signed with Prize Fight, so we’ll be moving
rapidly.”

The card’s opening bout tested junior middleweight Joey Bryant (11-0, 7 KOs) against journeyman
Anthony Bowman, a veteran of more than 60 fights. Bryant relied on his boxing skills, jabbing and
circling against the naturally bigger Bowman, who has been known to upset young undefeateds as
they rise through the ranks. Meanwhile, Bowman tried to lure Bryant in and score counter right
hooks, creating a stop-and-start affair that mingled frequent clinching with moments of heated
action. But Bowman’s lesser output of activity earned Bryant the shutout decision, with all three
judges scoring the match 60-54.
“This fight was at middleweight, and I’m a lightweight,” revealed Bryant after the fight. “My plan
was to just listen to my corner. I could’ve went to the body more, but I felt like being in close
was dangerous for me because I was the smaller fighter. My plan was to box. I can fight another
day, but boxing was what I was going to do tonight. I’m fighting every Saturday until November 15,
so I’m staying busy. We have big plans for 2015.”

Julius Dyis (2-1) was handed his first defeat against Justin Brunetti (3-3-1, 1 KO) in a four-round
junior middleweight matchup that also went the distance. Dyis relied on slickness, speed and
reflexes against his taller, rangier opponent in the opening rounds, but Brunetti picked up the
pace in the third, catching Dyis with right hooks and body shots. The fight looked a toss-up, but
all three judges at ringside gave the nod to Brunetti with identical scores of 39-37. “The guy was
pretty slick; you had to kind of bulldog your way in against him,” said Brunetti. “But he wasn’t
going to come forward, so I had to keep coming forward. I actually thought it was a closer fight
than what the judges had it. I was really rusty because I hadn’t fought in seven months, but I just
had to apply pressure. That was the only way I could win.”

Two heavyweights made their pro debuts in the third fight of the evening as James Tanksley (1-0)
took on Nathan Hester (0-1). Tanksley was clearly head hunting from the get-go, trying to land a
right-hand power shot and get a quick KO. But Hester survived and began to taunt his opponent,
putting his hands behind his back and waving him in—though his ring antics proved more successful
than his intermittent punching. By the third, with both fighters looking gassed, Tanksley fell back
on his jab in an often awkward fight, helping to earn him the victory on the scorecards by 40-36
(Reccia Mullins and Gerald Deming) and 39-37 (Mack Thornton).
“The coach told me to stay behind the jab because he was a strong guy, but I was trying to knock
him out early,” admitted Tanksley. “I learned tonight not to rush it, just work him behind that jab
and let it come to you.”

The crowd pleaser of the evening pitted hard-charging welterweight Rogelio Casarez (7-2-0, 1 KOs)
versus Dedrick Bell, a veteran of more than 30 fights coming off a TKO loss to Demarcus “Chop Chop”
Corley in August. The shorter Casarez rushed in to attack Bell from the start and didn’t take a
single step backward for six rounds, constantly barreling in to trap Bell against the ropes. But
though Bell appeared on the defensive for most of the fight, he was also landing cleanly and
effectively, particularly to the body, while never seeming truly hurt by Casarez. The head-to-head
action had the crowd roaring as Bell refused to be intimidated and Casarez refused to relent. But
after six rounds, two judges favored Casarez’s aggression, with scores of 59-55 (Deming and Mullins),
overruling Thornton’s 57-57 draw. “Pressure and a lot of punches was my plan tonight—pressure,
pressure, pressure,” said Casarez. “I was ready tonight. He’s a good fighter and hurt me with a few
of those body shots! But I just kept going and working.”

A six-round cruiserweight showdown between Cody Williams (7-0, 3 KOs) and
Darius Shorter (2-9, 5 KOs) proved that bad blood and poor sportsmanship can quickly devolve into
chaos. After heated verbal and visual exchanges from the opening bell, Williams used his jab and
footwork to tag his southpaw opponent from the outside as Shorter swung wildly with bad intentions,
but with limited success. Shorter inexplicably exposed his mouthpiece from the first round, and it
fell out in rounds one and two. A third and fourth time (including one that found the mouthpiece
flying clear into the crowd) prompted Phillips to deduct two more points as Shorter became more
frustrated and ineffective. After a fourth mouthpiece incident, Phillips waved off the fight,
earning a DQ win for Williams, whom Shorter dismissed when he approached him for the postfight
congratulations. “We had a little rough blood; he talked a lot of smack before the fight on
Facebook, but I relieved my anger on it,” said Williams, laughing. “He’s the bigger, stronger guy,
but I had the reach and speed to stay outside and jab him. I got a little winded and should have
thrown more punches. I would’ve gotten him out of there in four.”
“We were excited to feature some young undefeated talent like Bryant and Howard, plus rugged and
tough local kids,” said Prize Fight promoter Brian Young after the fights. “We knew Casarez and
Bell would turn in a fan-friendly fight. And Howard turned out to be too much—there was no feeling-
out process, he just went out and broke him down. I think he represented well tonight. He’s a young
kid with a very bright future.”

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Blue at 07:36, 27 October 2014

Blue at 07:23, 27 October 2014

Blue: Created page with " == REPORT == Fights at the Fitz Results: Howard Blasts Victor in One[http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/fights-at-the-fitz-results-howard-blasts-victor-in-one-266124#more-26612..."