Round 1 brings Alexander “The Great” to The Spot on March 9
By Glenn McBrady
For the St. Louis American
The supremely talented Devon Alexander “The Great” will return home from Las Vegas to headline a card on March 9 at The Spot Nightclub on North Broadway in Baden. Devon was handpicked as the main sparring partner for Floyd Mayweather as the consensus pound-for-pound champ prepares to face Zab Judah on April 8.
In addition to a sterling amateur background and an undefeated record, Alexander possesses the presence and personality that have put him in a class with Sugar Ray Leonard with regards to crossover appeal. Few professional boxers end up endorsing anything other than boxing equipment and apparel, but with an endearing smile that could sell an Eskimo a dimpled metal ice cube tray from Grandma’s Westinghouse, it will be interesting to see what life outside the ropes holds for Alexander and his savvy manager/trainer Kevin Cunningham.
“Dangerous” Danny Williams and his poisonous pair of hands will be featured in the co-main event on March 9, as well as Lamar “The Prince of Pain” Harris and DeAndre “Bull” Latimore, fresh off his pro debut in which he flipped off the lights on his first foe just half a minute in.
Tickets for Round One Promotions’ “Thursday Night Fights at The Spot” are $45 for VIP and $30 for General Admission and are available by calling The Spot at (314) 385-4545 or Metrotix at (314) 534-1111.
Flamethrowers light up cigar club
Eighteen amateur boxers provided electric entertainment for a tony, tuxedo-clad crowd inside the exclusive mahogany walls of the Racquet Club in the Central West End last Thursday evening, and several elite performances rose to prominence over the course of nine bouts.
The cagey southpaw Chris Sharp from the Police Athletic League of 12th & Park seemed determined early to crack open opponent Brandon Baue’s ribcage like lobster claws, chiseling away with right hooks that repeatedly snuck under the left elbow.
In round two, Baue returned fire in the form of high counter right hooks, but Sharp regained the momentum in the third with a combination that opened with a whisper of a 1,2 up top that paved the way for another searing right hook to Baue’s aching flank.
Not even Baue’s busy start and increased work rate in the fourth and final round could swing the scales back in his favor, and Sharp was rewarded for his efforts with the judges’ decision.
The back and forth action in the bout that followed may have lacked technique, but it overcompensated with excitement. Like wild, flame-throwing relief pitchers lacking location, Gamble’s Derron Moore and Cherokee’s Justin Wright brought their gas cans with them into the ring, and drama unfolded before the brandy-sipping, cigar-savoring audience waiting patiently for someone to get plunked in the ear.
The free-swinging Moore left his jab at the foot of the creaky wooden steps leading up to his red corner and instead fell in with huge hooks and right uppercuts that just missed the mark. Wright wasn’t stingy with his power punches either, but a busier Moore ultimately landed enough straight rights to get the nod.
In the eighth bout of the card, the PAL’s Jerry Brandon won a decision over the Warriors’ Torry Brooks. The orthodox duo were both looking to land big left hooks from the opening bell, and in the second frame a poised Brandon was able to paint his counterpart into a neutral corner with sharp lateral footwork to set up a series of barbed brush strokes.
By the third Brooks looked to be fading a little, but he dug deep and the pair exchanged the sort of vicious left hands they had been seeking for two and a half stanzas.
The fresher Brandon finished the fourth strong and joined his 12th & Park stable mates in the winner’s circle.
Judging by the enthusiastic reaction of the gentlemen in attendance, the action provided an exciting change of pace and a chance to blow off some steam while watching some great local talent.
More pro action in March
Pro boxing will return to the Heart of St. Charles Banquet Center on March 23 with a card featuring local sluggers and fan favorites Steve Vincent, Joe Stofle and Shawn Hammack, the group who along with Mike Wood are responsible for packing the house each time out. The night is also expected to mark the return of Cornell “The Assassin” Jackson, and judging by his ferocious training schedule, it’s clear he’s hungry for bigger fights at a weight class better suited to him.
Tickets to the next pro bouts at The Heart of St. Charles are available by calling promoter Jim Howell at (636) 561-2380.
Busy amateur calendar
Amateur fighters representing gyms across the area will battle tonight, March 2 and tomorrow, March 3 at the South Broadway Athletic Club, located at 2301 South 7th Street. The first bell rings at 7:30 on both nights and the proceeds benefit Ozark Boxing to help pay travel expenses for our talented youngsters.
Also, mark your calendar for the St. Louis Golden Gloves Tournament scheduled for April 13 at the St. Charles Convention Center. More details will follow as they become available.
Cold night for hot fights
The dedicated boxers who hit the streets of St. Louis a week ago Thursday were given a modest reward in the form of unseasonably mild temperatures that made it easier to defrost their bodies as they logged their roadwork.
But as a cold front swept across the region later that afternoon, a round of storms was followed by a mercury freefall, and by the time a large crowd convened at the Heart of St. Charles that evening for an amateur card, the second-story windows of the banquet hall were steamed like windshields lining a drive-in movie lot on a crisp autumn evening.
The hardy souls that came searching for a remedy for cabin fever found temporary relief in the form of brisk boxing action as several local standouts renewed old rivalries.
In the third bout, Benny Culpepper of the Police Athletic League stepped in against North County’s Lamarkis Cowan for a duel in the 125 lb. weight class.
Sporting baggy red velvet trunks and braids sprouting out from the top of his headgear, Culpepper varied his attack using 1,2’s up top and hooks for a strafing body assault.
Cowan countered with 1,2’s of his own, followed by double right hooks upstairs.
It was midway through round two that the action turned dicey. Culpepper’s right arm got tangled in the ropes near a neutral corner. The referee’s back was to me, so even from my seat at ringside I couldn’t hear his instructions, but Culpepper’s corner erupted as Cowan drilled his counterpart once and then again when Culpepper had been released.
It really riled Culpepper, and he clamped down on his plastic bit and came out swinging and looking to administer a little ring justice. The adrenaline dump continued after the second time out as the southpaw duo swapped caustic straight shots and Cowan looked to land a “no doubter” of a right hook.
At the conclusion of the contentious match, Cowan was given the nod by the judges as Culpepper’s corner boiled.
The action in the ring would continue to simmer in bout number four as Juzzton Hill hooked up with Darwin Price Jr. at 139 pounds.
The lefty Hill played the role of counterpuncher, launching lead lefts and looking to slip and counter with a sharp right hook to the head.
Despite Hill’s elusive head movement, Price stuck to his guns and stayed busy, continuing to spear at his slippery opponent’s mustard colored headgear with toothpick combinations.
Price’s work rate won him the decision and the partisan crowd celebrated when his blue mitt was raised.
In another highly competitive tilt, Louis Holloway bested Chris Eppley and in the process my notebook ended up getting sprinkled with a by-product of the 178-pound tussle.
The opening seconds began like a skydiver abandoning safety and taking the breathless last step off a plane; with the pair meeting in the ring’s center and Eppley firing hurtful hooks that Holloway calmly picked off with his gloves and forearms.
But in the first two frames Holloway would land clean right cross, left hook combinations and get the better of the toe-to-toe exchanges.
Eppley flashed a snappy jab and effective crosses in the third, but by then both of his nostrils were hemorrhaging and leaving wispy crimson spirit gum patterns on his opponent’s white tank top.
A rally in the fourth and final round helped Eppley’s cause, but by now the referee wanted the ringside physician to survey the source of the bitter forked stream.
After a green light was given, Holloway punctuated his performance with a 1,2 at the final bell and emerged with the decision victory.
The winds may have been swirling outside, but the stirring action inside provided thrills for the large audience that stepped out to support some of our area’s finest amateur fighters.
