–Allicock stops Shepherd

A LARGE and diverse crowd which included Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo turned up at the Everest Cricket Club ground on Camp Road in Georgetown, for last Saturday night’s ‘Fight night’ eight-bout boxing card.

The biggest International Boxing Card ever held in ‘oil-rich’ Guyana attracted pugilists from the USA, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Panama and Barbados and provided hope for the revival of professional boxing here.
When the curtains came down on the successful event just before 2 AM yesterday, USA-based Guyanane Elton Dharry had stopped his countryman Dexter Marques in the third round to win the WBA Super Flyweight Gold Title in a fight scheduled for 12 rounds.

Olympian Keevin Allicock gained a third-round TKO victory over Barbadian Jusean Shepherd on his Pro debut in the Junior Lightweight division.
Crowd favourite Johana Zuniga of Venezuela controversially lost to Panamanian Nataly Delgado in their WBA Fedelatin Super Flyweight title fight after she seemed to have gotten the better of her opponent.
Guyanese Laured Stewart who lives in the USA and at one time was making a movie, approached the ring with his entourage led by comedians ‘Granny’ and Michael Ignatius dancing to Calvin Burnett’s singing.

The showman was too good for an unfit-looking Iman ‘magic’ Khan, winning the six-round catchweight contest by way of a TKO.
The entertaining event which was promoted by Dharry and Seon Bristol also included half-time performances from Guyana’s Chutney singer Terry Gajraj, Dancehall artiste Alabama and T&T’s Savita Singh.
In the feature bout of the card, the 38-year-old Dharry sent the 37-year-old Marques to the canvas twice in the third round, resulting in the referee stopping the fight.
The pair had fought each other in 2011 with Dharry being victorious on that occasion also and this was billed as the redemption fight for Marques.
Dharry, who moved his Pro record to 28 fights, 6 losses and one draw wore the Golden Arrowhead on his trunks as the pair executed some pawing jabs which ended in clinches in the opening round.

In the second stanza, the tempo increased with both boxers scoring with good shots to the head.
Marques moved to 19 fights, with four losses. Three of his losses were knock-outs, including when he and Dharry first met in May 2011.
The police boxing coach missed with a big right with Dharry on the ropes before exchanging punches in the middle of the ring.
Marques was caught with a crunching straight left which staggered him.
Dharry went in for the kill and a left/right combination floored Marques who beat the eight-count.
An array of brutal shots to the body floored him for the second time in the round.

Marques was knocked out in 2:34 seconds of the third round as Dharry’s fans, some of them coming from the Essequibo Island of Wakenaam, were dancing in delight.
In the undercard, the 24-year-old Allicock made an auspicious pro debut against Shepherd, who has now lost both of his fights as a professional.
The Bajan threw the first punches of the contest: a couple of left japs and a right to the head.
Allicock, watched by President of the GBA and Director of Sport Steve Ninvalle, retaliated with some lightning-fast combinations as he pounded away at the body of Shepherd.
Shepherd spent most of the fight on the ropes and took punches in bunches.

In round two, Allicock, Guyana’s most accomplished amateur boxer, continued to fire shots to the body and uppercuts to the head of the Bajan, who wobbled on the ropes
Shepherd opened the third round with a few good ‘rights’ to the head of Allicock.
But Allicock worked the body and penetrated his (Shepherd’s) fair defence with some clinically executed straight rights to Shepherd’s face.
The referee had seen enough and halted the contest in 1:45 seconds of the third round.

After the title fight, Dharry said a third fight with Marques was not on his mind since he was looking ahead to what could be his last chance of gaining a WBA title.

Results:
Laured Stewart (Guy) beat Imran Khan (Guy) by TKO (catchweight six-rds)
Pedro Sanchez (Ven) beat Terrence Adams (Guy) in Super Bantamweight six-rds)
Edmond Declue (Guy) beat Charwin Estwick (Bar) in Super middleweight six rds)
Jean Carlo Rodrigues (Dom Rep) beat Rafael Marquez (Ven) in Flyweight six rds)
Ricardo Blackman beat Stephan DaSilva (Guy) in Bantamweight six rds)
Nataly Delgado (Pan) beat Johana Zuniga (Ven) for the WBA Fedelatin Super Flyweight title 10-rds)
Keevin Allicock (Guy) beat Jusean Shepherd (Bar) by TKO in Junior Lightweight six rds)
Elton Dharry (Guy) beat Dexter Marques (Guy) by TKO for the WBA Super Flyweight Gold title 12-rds)