Shakur KOs Guevara in Newark; ‘Shango’ Turns Away DeMarco in Minneapolis

Fighting in his hometown of Newark for his first time as a professional, featherweight Shakur Stevenson took care of business, routing late sub Alberto Guevara who lasted into the third round before Stevenson (12-0, 7 KOs) turned out the lights with a four-punch combination, two body punches followed by a left-right upstairs. Guevara, a two-time world title challenger as a bantamweight, was on the deck twice in the previous round. He had been stopped only once previously while forging a record of 27-4.

Stevenson’s next fight will likely be for the title, either a match for the WBO belt currently held by Oscar Valdez or a match against undefeated Josh Warrington (29-0) who holds the IBF belt. Warrington, a Yorkshireman, is promoted by Frank Warren who has a very cordial relationship (at least for the moment) with Stevenson’s promoter, Bob Arum.

Co-Main

The co-feature matched two bantamweights with identical 20-1-1 records: Joshua Greer Jr. and Nikolai Potapov.

As neither fighter was a big puncher, a draw was a reasonable expectation and it nearly came to that. But Greer, who fights out of Chicago, swept the last round on all three cards to nip his Russian opponent by a majority decision.

It was the 18^th straight win for Greer whose lone defeat was a narrow setback to Stephen Fulton who was 7-0 at the time and is currently 16-0. But Greer won no new fans with his effort. It was a dull fight and the crowd booed him as he was being interviewed post-fight in the ring.

In another bout of note, Vijender Singh improved to 11-0 (8) with a fourth-round stoppage of 38-year-old West Virginian Mike Snider (13-6-3). Singh bullied Snider into the ropes midway through the fourth frame and unleashed a flurry of punches, forcing the referee to interview.

A three-time Olympian who won bronze in Beijing, becoming the first fighter from India to win an Olympic medal in boxing, Singh, 33, is one of India’s most well-known sports personalities. Singh, who made his pro debut in Manchester, England, was making his U.S. debut after an 18-month absence from the ring during which he ran unsuccessfully for a post in India’s Parliament.

Also, 17-year-old Vito Mielnicki Jr from nearby Roseland, NJ, believed to be the youngest person ever granted a professional boxing license in the Garden State, made a smashing debut with a 76-second knockout of Tamarcus Smith (2-3) of Meridian, Mississippi. Mielnicki knocked Smith unconscious with a left-right combination. Smith, who landed face first on the canvas, was able to leave the ring on his own power.

Minneapolis

In a crowd-pleaser that was closer than what one would glean from the scorecards, local fan favorite Jamal “Shango” James (28-1) had to dig deep to turn away spunky Mexican veteran Antonio DeMarco (33-8-1). All three judges had it 98-92.

A 15-year-pro and former two-division world title-holder, the 33-year-old DeMarco, now competing as a welterweight, entered the contest having lost four of his last six, but he brought his “A” game, repeatedly strafing his taller opponent with body shots. But “Shango” was superbly conditioned and never wilted, returning fire whenever it appeared that the tide was turning against him. At the final bell, the crowd accorded both fighters a well-deserved standing ovation.

Jamal James was making his fourth consecutive appearance at the Minneapolis Armory. He has won six straight since suffering his lone defeat at the hands of Yordenis Ugas.

In an undercard bout of note, Bryant Perrella (17-2,14 KOs) scored a third-round stoppage over Dominique Dolton (22-3-1) in a welterweight showdown. It was a career-best performance by the southpaw from Fort Myers, Florida, as on paper this shaped up as a near “pick-em” contest.

Perrella had a big second round and pressed his advantage in the next stanza, backing Dolton into the ropes and hammering away until the referee finally intervened. The official time was 1:24 of round three.

Photo credit: Mikey Williams for Top Rank

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