At the Hamilton Manner in Hamilton, New Jersey, former Olympic bronze medalist, Terrance Cauthen, outpointed Philadelphia’s Philip “Mongoose” McCants to recapture his winning ways.
For Cauthen, this bout marked his first fight since losing John O’Donnell in London last September, while for McCants, this was only his second fight since 2006.
Each stanza of the six round bout seemed to be a mirror image of the previous round. The fight was riddled with clinching and holding — and for the first time all night, the crowd demanded more action.
For the type of fight this turned out to be, there was no doubt Cauthen was better suited. The quick southpaw would throw one or two punches at a time before (and to his credit, landed them at high success rate) leaning on McCants, waiting for the referee to step in and separate the two.
McCants had trouble finding ways to let his hands go, as much of his punches were thrown with little to nothing on them while he and Cauthen were in close, tied up.
The “Mongoose” had no answer for Cauthen’s speed as the former Olympian’s jabs and straight lefts were beginning to leave their stamp on McCant’s face as early as the second round. As the fight progressed, McCants’ right continued to swell at an alarming rate, undoubtedly making it more difficult for the native-Philadelphian to conduct his work.
While it was Cauthen who did much of the leaning and holding, McCants was a guilty culprit at times as well and in the fourth round, the referee took points away from McCants and Cauthen for that very reason.
In the fifth round, Cauthen shoved McCants a bit, forcing him off-balance and at the same time threw a punch that grazed McCants and sent him to the canvas. The referee ruled it a knockdown and subsequently the round should have been scored 10-8 Cauthen.
Similar to American super middleweight Andre Ward, Cauthen is a fighter with an outstanding amateur pedigree. There is no doubt that he can box when he wants to.
However, also like Ward (of recent), Cauthen saw it fit to initiate clinching between he and his opponent and fight an unpleasing style.
With that said, “Heat” did what he had to do to get back in the win column and that’s all that counts.
All three judges scored the bout in favor for Cauthen. Judge George Hill had it 58-53; Luis Rivera saw it 59-53; and Gene Williams scored it 59-52.
With the win, Cauthen improves to 36-7, 9 KOs, while McCants falls to 8-2-1, 3 KOs.
Charles Hayward vs. Jason Burrell — 6 Rounds, light heavyweight
Philadelphia’s Charles Hayward went all Bachman Turner Overdrive on Wilmington Delaware’s Jason Burrell and took care of business before three rounds, improving his record to 6-2, 2 KOs.
Sporting Duke University trunks (basketball shorts), Burrell seemed a little out of place from the start, when he and his team walked to the wrong corner of the ring.
Having not fought professionally in over five years, Burrell showed no immediate signs of ring rust, engaging in a brawl with Hayward from the opening bell, exchanging wild, ill-intentioned power punches with one another.
This proved to be a bad idea for Burrell when he got caught with a left-right combination that sent him to the canvass. He beat the ref’s ten count, but less than a minute later was dropped with another left-right combo at the bell. Burrell flamboyantly returned to his feet, raising his arms in the air to signal to the crowd he was alright.
However, after returning the stool on unsteady legs, referee Dave Franciosi wasn’t convinced. When Burrell stood up for the start of round three, Franciosi didn’t like what he saw and called a halt to the bout, awarded Hayward the TKO victory.
Burrell drops to 2-6-3, 2 KOs with the loss.
Derrick Webster vs. William Chouloute — 4 Rounds, middleweight
Although he dropped a four round decision to Derrick Webster, he won me over with his fantastic nickname: William “21 Gun” Chouloute.
Trenton’s Webster using a snapping jab to keep Chouloute on the outside for all four rounds, making him pay a dear price when he dared to rush inside. After cruising through the first three rounds, the undefeated Webster turned up the heat in the fourth, clearly making an effort to add another KO to his record.
With a barrage of rights and lefts, Webster overwhelmed Chouloute until the finally was knocked off balance, letting gravity due the rest. “21 Gun” Chouloute beat the referee’s ten count, however, and survived to hear the final bell.
Webster won on all three scorecards by scores of 40-35. He improves to 6-0, 4 KOs, while Chouloute drops to 1-2, 1 KO.
Alando Swain vs. David Navero — 4 Rounds, super middleweight
Philadelphia’s David Navero’s professional debuted lasted all of just 1:44 seconds. That was all the time Alando Swain needed to drop Navero twice and force referee Al Huggins to step in and call a halt the bout.
About a minute into the inaugural round, Swain perfectly placed a right hand on Navero’s chin, sending him to the canvas. After the Philly fighter beat the 10 count, Swain immediately picked up where he left off, throwing two vicious left hooks to Navero’s body, before dropping him for the second and final time with one more right hand.
With the win, Swain improves to 2-1, 2 KO, while Navero starts his career 0-1.
Mark Ford vs. Tyaab Beale — 4 Rounds, heavyweight
In a battle of two big men, Newark’s Tyaab Beale easily navigated by Trenton’s Mark Ford, sweeping a decision on all three judge’s scorecards, earning himself a unanimous decision victory.
Beale was slightly more athletic and undoubtedly in better shape than his opponent. After a mildly competitive first round, Ford got up off his stool and was gassed. He spent at least two-thirds of the second round catching his breath while taking punishment with his back pinned against the corner of the ring.
Beale capitalized on his opponent’s lack of punch output and outworked his opponent in all four rounds.
With the win Beale improves to 3-3, 1 KO, while Ford drops to 2-2, 1 KO.
Marcus Smith vs. Bernard Porter — 4 Rounds, junior welterweight
Trenton’s Marcus Smith decided it was time for his “O” to go. When he entered the Hamilton Manner’s doors he was an 0-3 fighter, having just been stopped in his last fight.
When he exited the ropes after his fight concluded, he was the proud owner of a 1-3 record, with that coming by way of second round stoppage.
Both fighters weren’t particularly hard to find, and in the first round they both got touched up. When the round concluded, Porter — who was making his professional debut, was sporting a bloody nose.
Unlike the first round, which featured a bit more back and forth action, the second round belonged to Smith. The Trenton native dropped Philadelphia’s Porter early in the round courtesy of a short left hook. Shortly after he beautifully countered a straight right with a straight right of his own that landed right on Porter’s chin, sending him crumbling to the canvas. That’s when Porter’s corner stepped in and stopped the fight at the :56 mark of round 2.
Yehudi Fracas vs. Jesse Crawford — 4 Rounds, welterweight
In the night’s opening bout, Trenton’s Yehudi Fracas bested Philadelphia’s Jesse Crawford via majority decision to start his professional career with a 1-0 record.
Both fighter’s found success at different times throughout their twelve minutes in the ring together, however, it was Fracas who continually got the better of Crawford, who spent too much time going backwards.
When it was all said and done, one judge scored the bout even, 38-38, while two judges awarded Fracas the decision by scores of 40-35 and 39-36, respectively.
