– Allicock victorious on pro debut
A large crowd of boxing fans were treated to a dominant display of clinical boxing as US-based Guyanese boxer Elton ‘The Bully’ Dharry administered a third-round knockout of his opponent Dexter ‘The Kid’ Marques en route to lifting the WBA Super Flyweight Gold belt.
Staged at the Everest Cricket Ground on Saturday night, fans who turned up in their numbers to witness the seven-fight card left the venue satisfied. Dharry, who sped out of the blocks in the opening seconds of the first round, stamped his authority on the bout, hardly allowing Marques to step forward.
Dharry persisted with jabs and body shots in the opening rounds and wore down his opponent before cornering the visibly hurt Marques against the ropes midway through the third round. Fans were on their feet and roaring their approval as Dharry unleashed a deadly combination of body shots to have Marques almost doubled over against the ropes.
While Marques was still on his feet as the referee stepped in, that brief reprieve was not enough, with Dharry stepping in once again to land a couple of right hooks to Marques temple, sending him to the canvas, with the referee stopping the fight 2 minutes, 34 seconds into the round.
A visibly hyped Dharry celebrated as the fans cheered him on. Speaking after the bout, Dharry was elated, pointing out that this win on home soil “means a lot; this is the biggest title I’ve won, and I’ve won eight titles.”
For 38-year-old Dharry, whose professional record now stands at 28 wins (15 KOs), 6 losses, and a draw, the WBA Super Flyweight Gold Belt is another step forward to a coveted shot at a world title.
Meanwhile, all eyes were on crowd favourite Keevin ‘Lightning’ Allicock as he made his professional debut against Barbados’ Jusean Shepherd in their junior welterweight fight. He did not disappoint and delivered on his promise of an early knockout, sending a flurry of headshots to the Bajan as the referee was forced to stop the fight one minute, 45 seconds into round three, as Allicock scored a technical knockout win to the delight of the crowd.
In the build-up to the main event, social media personality Laured ‘Lion’ Stewart battered Imran Khan in a thoroughly one-sided Cruiserweight affair. Stewart clearly was in better physical shape than his opponent, and it showed as the ‘Lion’ forced Khan into four standing counts, with the referee stopping the fight after the fourth.
Venezuelan Johana Zuniga was left fuming after the judges scored 96-94, 96-94, and 97-93 in favour of her Panamanian opponent Nataly Delgado. During their six-round encounter for the
WBA Fedelatin Super Flyweight Zuniga had looked as though she was winning and had the crowd’s support. At the announcement of Delgado’s victory, Zuniga and the crowd expressed their displeasure.
In other bouts, US-based Dominican Republic fighter Jean Carlos Rodrigues and Venezuelan Rafa Marquez had the crowd going as they fought an exciting six-round flyweight clash. Both boxers had their moments as Marquez pinned Rodrigues back in the opening rounds; however, the latter fought his way back, and at the end of their fight, the judges scored them evenly to deem it a draw.
Guyanese Edmond De Clou secured a unanimous decision to beat Bajan Charwain Estwick, while Terrence Adams lost to Pedro Sanchez. (Michelangelo Jacobus)
