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MASHANTUCKET, Conn. (Aug. 26^th, 2017) – Reigning World Boxing Council U.S. National Boxing Council (WBC USNBC) welterweight champion Jimmy Williams retained his title Saturday in a wild finish over Issouf Kinda of the Bronx at Foxwoods Resort Casino.

Williams (14-0-1, 6 KOs) scored the knockout at the 1-minute, 26-second mark of the fourth round in peculiar finish, cracking Kinda (18-5) with a right cross on the break as veteran referee Steve Smoger separated two following a brief clinch.

As Smoger yelled, “Break!” Kinda threw a quick right that momentarily clipped Smoger instead of Williams. The reigning champ landed with his right hand, sending Kinda crashing to the canvas. Smoger counted him out and Williams retained the title despite trailing on two of the three scorecards entering the fourth round.

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The event, promoted by CES Boxing, aired live on Facebook via FIGHTNIGHT LIVE as a precursor to Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor megabout in Nevada.

The controversial finish set off a brief melee in the ring, but cooler heads prevailed as Williams celebrated his first title defense and 10^th consecutive win since fighting to a draw with Greg Jackson in 2013. Kinda has now lost two in a row since his win over Zach Ramsey in May of 2016.

Up until the knockout, Kinda led by three rounds on one of the scorecards and one round on another card while Williams led by three rounds on the third scorecard.

In a fight that turned out to be as exciting as advertised, junior welterweight Cristobal Marrero (5-0) of New London, Conn., edged Springfield, Mass., vet Miguel Ortiz(2-1) by split decision, 57-56, 56-57, 57-56.

Marrero fought thrown a swollen eye and dropped Ortiz in the fifth round to seal his fifth win in as many fights, but Ortiz, as always, came to brawl and brought the fight to Marrero in the early rounds, using his come-forward style to bully Ortiz and press him into the ropes while landing short, clean punches on the inside.

Marrero found his difference down the stretch with the knockdown sealing Ortiz’s fate, even with one judge scoring the bout in favor of Ortiz. The bout was supposed to take place in June, but Ortiz was forced to withdraw due to a shoulder injury. The bout was rescheduled for Saturday and changed from four to six rounds, which ultimately worked in Marrero’s favor.

With boxing and mixed martial arts colliding in Nevada in the Mayweather-McGregor bout, CES got in on the action at Foxwoods with eight-time Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) vet Leandro Silva (0-1) of Sao Paolo, Brazil, making his professional boxing debut against unbeaten cruiserweightRichard Rivera (3-0) of Hartford, Conn.

Silva, who is 20-6 in MMA, came out with his hands held high, more reminiscent of his style inside the cage, which flustered Rivera at first. The hard-hitting cruiserweight had a hard time landing anything clean until he caught Silva flush with a right hook on the inside that sent him to the canvas for a split second.

Silva popped up quickly, unharmed by the flash knockdown, and continued to trade fearlessly with the heavily-decorated Rivera, at one point dancing along the ropes and taunting his opponent. Rivera won the fight, 40-35 on all three scorecards due to the knockdown.  

Worcester, Mass., lightweight Jamaine Ortiz (5-0) kept his perfect record intact, earning a 40-36 verdict on all three scorecards against Loraine, Ohio, vet Angel Figueroa (4-5-1). Fighting for the first time since April, Ortiz’s endurance and output was too much for Figueroa, who hung tough early, but ran out of gas in the closing rounds. Ortiz returns to the ring Sept. 16^th in Rhode Island, looking to improve to 6-0.

Sicilian heavyweight Juiseppe Cusumano (12-1, 10 KOs) continued to impress on his regional tour, making his Foxwoods debut in grand fashion with a first-round knockout win over Wilmington, Del., vet Robert Dunton (11-17-1) at the 2-minute mark. Dunton tried to work the body against the taller Cusumano, but Cusumano’s superior size and strength was too much to handle; Cusumano caught Dunton along the ropes with a left and followed by cracking him with three consecutive overhand rights, sending Dunton into the ropes and forcing the referee to step in and stop the bout.

Cusumano also returns Sept. 16^th in Rhode Island in a six-round bout against Californian Matt McKinney.

Boston, Mass., native and former U.S. Marine Jarel Pemberton (1-0), the son of New England icon and former world-title challenger “Sandman” Scott Pemberton, impressed in his professional debut, defeating game challenger Nate Schulte (0-3) of Woburn, Mass., by unanimous decision, 39-37 on all three scorecards.

Pemberton was the aggressor from the opening bell, but Schulte hung in for four hard rounds, unafraid to fight on the inside, and even landed a clean left hand in the third round that momentarily stunned his opponent. Pemberton ultimately regained his composure and finished strong to seal the victory, his first win as a pro.

Also on the undercard, Hartford junior middleweight Jose Rivera (4-1) won his second consecutive fight, outworking the hard-charging Corwin Farmer (1-2) of Tarboro, N.C., to earn a 39-37, 39-37, 40-36 unanimous decision victory. Farmer, entered fresh off his first professional win in January, actually did his best work on the inside, but Rivera controlled the pace by utilizing his jab to keep Farmer from gaining any momentum.

– CES –

Moore dominates Fernandez to remain unbeaten; Ramsey upsets Soto in wild co-feature

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (Oct. 5th, 2013) – Light middleweight prospect Michael Moore of New Haven, Conn., kept his perfect record intact Saturday with a hard-fought win over game veteran Antonio Fernandes at Mohegan Sun Casino.

The unbeaten Moore (13-0), originally from Cleveland, calmly controlled the fight from start to finish, at times staggering the crafty, elusive Fernandes (3-13-2) over the course of 10 rounds. Fernandes’ awkward defensive style frustrated Moore early on, but as Fernandes (Brockton, Mass.) began to tire, Moore got his second win in latter half of the bout and closed out the fight in style, earning a 98-92, 100-90, 98-92 unanimous-decision win in the main event.

The battle of unbeaten welterweight prospects in the eight-round co-feature lived up to the billing as Zack Ramsey (6-0) of Hartford, Conn., and Edwin Soto (9-1-2) of New Haven waged a back-and-forth battle with both sides jockeying for the upper hand throughout the fight. Ramsey utilized his superior speed, coupled with his ability to weave in and out of trouble, to pull off the upset win by unanimous decision, 78-74, on all three cards.

Picking his spots while fighting on the outside for most of the night, Ramsey dominated the early rounds until Soto mounted a late surge, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the slick boxing by Ramsey in the first half of the fight. After beating Fernandes in September by unanimous decision, Ramsey has now won three fights in a five-month span in 2013, cementing his status as one of the elite, up-and-coming welterweights in the region.

Returning to New England for the second time in less than a month, Lancaster, Pa., welterweight Evincii Dixon (2-2-2) fought to a majority draw against New Haven’s Christian Lao (4-2-1). Dixon previously fought at Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., losing a six-round decision to Nick DeLomba. Last night’s fight was much closer as he and Lao – fighting for the first time in 15 months – exchanged blows throughout four competitive rounds.

Judges Bill Morande and Clark Sammartino scored the bout 38-38 while judge Don Trella scored it 39-37 in favor of Lao. The difference was the opening round, which Trella scored in favor of Lao while Morande and Sammartino awarded it to Dixon.

In the opening bout, New Haven light middleweight David Wilson (2-0) won for the second time in as many bouts, beating tough veteran Danny Lugo (2-5) of Harrisburg, Pa., by unanimous decision, 40-36, on all three scorecards. Lugo absorbed his share of punishment from the taller, faster Wilson, but kept coming forward, making for a fast-paced between the two combatants. Lugo was effective when fighting on the inside, but Wilson’s significant reach advantage and subsequent ability to keep Lugo at bat turned out to be the difference.

Fighting for the first time in more than a year, New England light heavyweight Charles Foster (5-0) kept his perfect record intact with a hard-fought, unanimous-decision win over Philadelphia veteran Greg Hackett (2-13), 40-36, on all three scorecards. Foster was originally supposed to face fellow Philadelphia light heavyweight Taneal Goyco, but Goyco suffered a shoulder injury two days before the weigh-in and Hackett agreed to take the fight on short notice.

Undersized at 5-foot-6 against the taller, leaner Foster, Hackett gave it his all and showed no fear fighting on the inside, but Foster made the most of his short, quick punches to soften Hackett and, like Wilson in the previous bout, used his reach to frustrate his opponent.

In the final bout, heavyweight Solomon Maye (1-0, 1 KO) of New Haven, Conn., making his pro debut, stopped the overmatched John Desmond (0-1) of Duxbury, Mass., thirty-seven seconds into the opening round. Maye came out swinging and Desmond failed to defend himself, prompting the referee to stop the bout.

– CES –

Boxer moves to Connecticut to become a champion

Boxer Michael Moore-thinks he has a chance to make it big, so does his boxing family, which has given him a chance of a lifetime.