Karmazin Back in the Mix, Tops McKart

In front of a large partisan crowd at the Hollywood Park Casino in Inglewood, California, Roman Karmazin reinvigorated his career with a twelve-round unanimous decision win over fellow former world champion Bronco McKart to headline a stellar eleven-fight card.

Karmazin (37-3-1, 23 KOs) of Los Angeles, California by way of Katsniezesk, Russia took control of the fight early on with an accelerated work rate that McKart could not match. Karmazin looked on his way to an easy victory after three rounds, but McKart (51-9-1, 31 KOs) of Monroe, Michigan came to life in the fourth. Although McKart, 158, would land his share of solid shots, Karmazin’s punch count was just too much for him on this night. Karmazin, 157 ¾, boxed and moved well and carried his power to the higher weight class for the first time.

McKart, fighting for his career perhaps, would go out swinging late in the fight. Behind on the cards, “Superman” as he has been known, tried valiantly to knock Karmazin out, but it was not to be. In the end, scores read 117-111, 119-109 and 118-110 all for Karmazin.

Although he took a decisive decision win over a solid former champion, Karmazin was not pleased with his own performance. “I am not happy,” declared Karmazin. “I did not do what I wanted to do. I thought I should have stopped him, but I couldn’t.” Karmazin may not have scored a knockout, but it was an impressive showing nonetheless. With the win over McKart, the #11 ranked IBF contender, Karmazin could be a fight or two away from challenging for a title. When asked which champion he would ideally meet, Karmazin replied simply, “Whatever, anybody, it doesn’t matter.”

Instead of fielding questions about potential title opportunities, McKart must now decide whether or not there is a future for him in the squared circle. “I have to go home and do some real thinking,” McKart explained. “It might be the end of the road. I don’t know. I am going to be realistic about it. That was definitely a fight I should have won.” If it is indeed the end of his career, McKart should be satisfied with what he has accomplished in the sport. “I give my all,” said the former WBO Light Middleweight Champion. “I come to earn my money and give the crowd their money’s worth.”

In an evenly matched pairing of former amateur champions, Willie Nelson (10-0-1, 6 KOs) of Cleveland, Ohio fought to a draw with Antonio Johnson (7-0-1, 3 KOs) of Oakland, California. Nelson, in the Paul Williams mold of a welterweight at six-foot-three, kept a busy pace throughout the fight, but Johnson landed some of the more eye-popping shots. Nelson, 149, may have lost some rounds on the judges’ cards because he often fought backing up. Johnson, 150, was always coming forward looking to land.

After six hard to score rounds, one judge had the fight 58-56 Nelson, one had it 59-55 Johnson and the third turned in the even score 57-57. Both fighters should be commended for taking the fight so early in their careers. Hopefully a rematch can be arranged down the road.

Local favorite Vardan Gasparyan (11-1-4, 5 KOs) of Glendale, California by way of Yerevan, Armenia was pressed throughout, but came away with a unanimous six-round decision over Octavio Narvaez (7-6-1, 4 KOs) of Chinandega, Nicaragua. Gasparyan, 148, and Narvaez, 153 ½, stood toe-to-toe throughout all six acts of the fight. Several of the rounds were close, but all three judges gave the fight to Gasparyan. Scores read 60-57 and 59-55 twice for the Armenian.

Crowd-pleasing action fighter Dean Byrne (10-0, 4 KOs) of Los Angeles, California by way of Crumlin, Ireland stopped Francisco Rios Gil (13-9, 9 KOs) of Phoenix, Arizona in the fourth of a scheduled six rounds. Gil, 147 ½, caught Byrne, 150, several times during the bout, but the Irishman was clearly the more skillful prizefighter. Byrne scored a knockdown in the third with a body shot and another in the fourth with a right hand upstairs. Gil rose to his feet again, but was stunned by a right hand that provoked the stoppage at 1:11 of the fourth.

If you blinked, you missed it, but former EliteXC cage fighter Joe Schilling (1-0, 1 KO) of Los Angeles stopped Orlando Brizzo (0-1) of Los Angeles via San Benedetto del Tronto, Italy in a pairing of pro debuting super middleweights. Brizzo, 170, charged at Schilling, 170, at the first bell, running directly into a right hand. The punch had Brizzo out on his feet before his head hit the mat. Officially the bout lasted all of five seconds.

Power-punching Nigerian heavyweight prospect Lateef Kayode (5-0, 4 KOs) of Hollywood, California dropped Ethan Cox (2-4-1, 1 KO) of Long Beach, California two times en route to a one-sided second round stoppage. Kayode, 206, pressed the action from the outset, as Cox, 243, kept his distance. In the second, Kayode clobbered Cox with two right hands and finished with a devastating left hook to put his opponent on the mat. Cox rose on unsteady legs and was soon floored by another left as referee Jack Reiss moved in to stop the contest. Time of the stoppage was 1:02 of the second stanza.

Rising super featherweight prospect Gabriel Tolmajyan (5-1, 1 KO) of Glendale, California scored an emphatic second-round technical knockout over a game Andre Kim (2-3) of Sacramento, California. Tolmajyan, 130, opened and closed the fight aggressively, flashing the speed and skill that made him a top international amateur.

Kim, 130, showed amazing heart and chin late in the second, handling Tolmajyan’s relentless attack without dropping to the canvas. With Kim apparently out on his feet, and absorbing several unanswered punches, the referee stopped the bout at 1:46 of the second.

Former amateur standout Ismayl Sillakh (6-0, 5 KOs) of Simi Valley, California capitalized on his advantages in both speed and power, stopping free-swinging Jose Humberto Corral (16-11, 10 KOs) of Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico in second round of a scheduled four-round light heavyweight fight. Sillakh, 177, kept his foot on the gas pedal throughout the fight, hurting Corral, 177, continually with ruthless body shots. With the Mexican slugger backed into a corner, taking shots, the referee jumped in to stop the bout at the 1:13 mark of the second.

In a quality opening bout, former New York Golden Gloves Champion Khabir Suleymanov (6-0, 2 KOs) of Hollywood, California showed his class in besting former WBO Intercontinental Bantamweight Champion Lante Addy (6-3, 4 KOs) of Baltimore, Maryland by way of Accra, Ghana over four rounds. Addy, 123, had his moments, but was outworked throughout the contest. Suleymanov, 119, seemed to have a close, but clear edge in each of the stanzas, but came away with a majority decision. Scores read 40-36, 39-37 for Suleymanov, with one score even at 38-38.

In the first of two walk-out bouts, WBO #8/WBA#9 ranked welterweight Vitaliy Demyanenko (16-0, 11 KOs) of Almaty, Kazakhstan maintained his unblemished record, forcing Marteze Logan (26-35-2, 6 KOs) of Covington, Tennessee to remain on his stool after three completed rounds. Demyanenko, 147, was in complete control throughout the fight. Logan, 148, a serviceable journeyman, could not handle Demyanenko’s speed or power.

In the final bout of the evening/early morning, WBC USNBC Middleweight Champion David Medina (20-2, 10 KOs) of Junction City, Kansas dropped Dan Wallace (9-8, 3 KOs) of Adrian, Michigan in the first en route to a six-round unanimous decision. Wallace, 167, worked his way back into the fight, buzzing Medina, 168 ½, a couple times. However, Medina weathered his opponent’s aggressive spurts and fired back combinations of his own. In the end, Medina took the decision with scores of 58-56 and 59-55 twice.

Familiar faces in the crowd included Andre Ward, James Toney, Deandre Latimore and Andrei Arlovski. The entertaining night of boxing was promoted by Art of Boxing Promotions and Bash Boxing.

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.