It was a classic. In a town that enjoys a classic brawl so few and far between, the Minneapolis Convention Center was treated to one for the storybooks when Caleb Truax finally met Matt Vanda with Minnnesota middleweight supremacy on the line.
Minnesota boxing, for all intents and purposes waved goodbye to an icon, as Matt Vanda came up short against his probable successor Caleb Truax in a 10 round unanimous decision. The state’s strongest ticket sellers in this era were able to generate a strong crowd, and supplement the atmosphere with an absolute show.
Minnesota’s middleweight champion, Caleb Truax, solidified his title by outclassing the St. Paul native over ten rounds, despite sporadic rallies from Vanda. The veteran, Vanda, attempted to win the mental war over the younger Truax by raising his hand in triumph following a flurry midway through the bout. The Osseo native, Truax, showed poise, and was able to answer back with strong combinations throughout the fight, and eventually silence a pro-Vanda crowd.
The electricity was amplified in the late rounds of the bout, as the always energetic Vanda fan base urged their fighter on, but to little success. Vanda was outgunned by the younger, faster and stronger fighter from the early going. In a bout that truly served as a shot in the arm to the sport of boxing in Minnesota, Truax reigned supreme and showed promise of a new era, just as Vanda did so many times in the past decade.
The bout was complimented by a strong undercard line up which featured an instant local classic between Charles Meir and Travis Perzynski. Both fighters tasted the canvas, in an all out war, as Meir was able to outlast the less experienced Perzynski over eight rounds.
A man dubbed as one of the state’s strongest punchers pound for pound, put his power on display, when Muhammad Kayongo went toe to toe with Gilbert Venegas in a six round slugfest. Kayongo was able to slide the uppercut through the cover of Venegas all too often, and pull out a unanimous decision victory in a well contested bout.
Also in action were lightweight standouts Jeremy Mclaurin, who made his way back into the win column by beating Dewayne Wisdom, and Tony Lee who topped Leonard Overstreet, both in decision victories.
