Professional boxing will make a thrilling return at a unique venue tomorrow evening (Friday, January 15) at Rumble Time Promotions’ “New Year’s Brawl” onstage at The Pageant in the U. City Loop.
Former local amateur standouts Dannie Williams, Lamarr Harris and Tyrone Chatman will be in action, as well as current amateur star Stephon Young.
The hard-punching St. Louisan “Dangerous” Dannie Williams (12-1) will face a tough test in the form of rising lightweight prospect Daniel Mitchell. The well-traveled Pittsburgh native will look to add another victory to a 5-0 career mark that has been crafted at locations such as Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas and Mohegan Sun in Connecticut.
Lamarr “The Prince of Pain” Harris has faced a bumpy road on the road recently, having been the victim of questionable decisions out of town. His return for the first time in four bouts will match him against Granite City’s own Ryan Davis (21-8).
The middleweight Davis is an 11-year vet and Heart of St. Charles fixture who recently signed with Rumble Time. There’s no question the test will be important for both fighters as they look to improve on their records and start the year on a winning note.
The former 12th & Park star Tyrone Chatman will look to build on his 3-1 professional ledger against Kansas City, Kansas’ Chad Vandenburg (7-2). The southpaw Chatman has shown he has serious pop in his gloves with his wins all coming by way of knockout, and it will be a treat to see him back in action after a seven month layoff.
Stephon Young made a name for himself years ago in the St. Louis amateur boxing scene, but his performance at the Chaifetz Arena in October against his 112-pound counterpart from Great Britain served as a coming out party for the slick lefty with huge potential.
With Evander Holyfield watching from ringside, Young dropped his opponent with the first punch he threw and then used speed combined with superior ring generalship as he cruised to a decision and put everyone in his weight class on notice. Young is scheduled to open the card tomorrow night and it will be interesting watching his career arc as he moves forward.
Jamal Parram is a 12th & Park product who will look to make a statement in the super bantamweight division, returning after a layoff to face Kansas City’s Ryan Pederson. Although it has been a while since Parram has been in action, he always brings his exciting style along with a legion of fans he attracted over a highly decorated amateur career winning tournaments near and far.
Followers of boxing’s “glamour division” can look forward to the heavyweight debut of Wesley Blanks, the DeSoto bruiser that a one insider referred to as “a beast.”
Undefeated prospect Prenice Brewer (13-0) will travel from Cleveland and attempt to keep his slate clean in a clash with the battle-tested Marteze Logan.
Tickets for the historic “New Year’s Brawl” at the Pageant on Friday, Jan. 15 are priced at $40, $45 and $60 and are available at the Pageant box office and Ticketmaster, or by calling (314) 607-9850. Also, the public is invited to the 4:30 weigh-in on Thursday at Paul Mineo’s Restaurant at Westport.
