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06/06/2004 Archived Entry: "COMMOTION AT THE OCEAN"
COMMOTION AT THE OCEAN
By Katherine Dunn
The Friday night show at Chinook Winds was the second evening of back-to-back boxing presented by Goosen-Tutor Promotions in the casino by the sea. Thursday night, June 3 featured the Showtime Next Generation show with Robert Guerrero’s remarkable performance in stopping former world champ Enrique Sanchez. The Friday night card was a showcase for some promising local talent in front of some 900 or so fans. Selected bouts will be broadcast by tape delay on Fox Sports Net Sunday Night Fights on June 6, 2004. With a big snack bar grilling away at one end, the upstairs ballroom smells tastier than any other fight arena we know and the atmosphere was cheerful.
In the main event scheduled for ten, Portland, Oregon's Steve "2 Pound" Forbes, 146 lbs (23-2, 6 KO’s) former IBF Jr. Lightweight Champion, stopped Arthur Cruz, 142 lbs (20-15-2, 10 KO’s) of Denver, Colorado at 1:59 of the 2nd round. Though he was not as visibly ripped as usual, Forbes says his extra weight has helped him set down on his punches and develop more power. With plenty of hand speed still on tap, Forbes dropped Cruz twice with ferocious body shots. After Cruz lurched up off the deck the second time he was obviously in for another dose of the same so Referee Jim Erickson stopped the slaughter. Forbes held the IBF 130 championship until he failed to make the championship weight before his dominating win over David Santos. Now 27, Forbes says he wants to campaign at 135 but took this fight on short notice when the originally scheduled bout fell out.
8 round Heavyweight BoutMalcolm Tann (11-1, 5 KO’s) of San Antonio, Texas, the tall, athletic National Golden Gloves Champ won a unanimous decision in a grudge return match with the only man to defeat him as a pro, Willie Chapman (18-19-3, 5 KO’s) of Ogden , Utah. The short, stocky Chapman was occasionally dangerous with nicely placed combos but after three punches he’d run out of steam and pause to consider. Tann took good advantage of the gaps in Chapman’s offense. The judges called it: 80-72, 79-73, 79-73 for Tann.
4 round Women’s Lightweight BoutIBA champ Chevelle Hallback, 132 lbs (21-4-1, 9 KO’s) stopped southpaw Bonnie Canino 131 lbs (10-4, 4 KO’s) of Dania, Florida at 1:05 of the 4th round. This bout was made on short notice to replace another bout which had scratched, but it was a good opportunity to see Hallback in impressive action. The skilled and dramatic Hallback alternated stalking and pouncing on her scrappy but out-gunned southpaw opponent. Canino is tall but her long jab didn’t pack enough pop to disrupt Hallback’s plans. Canino has been retired for five years and training other boxers in her own fitness gym outside Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She staged the Women’s U.S.A. National Tournament in 2003. Canino was a two time world champ at 126 pounds and also won two world titles in kick boxing. She had to be in Lincoln City with her fighter, Yvonne Reis, who boxed on the June 3 undercard of the Showtime broadcast, and says she took this fight as a favor to Hallback, who occasionally trains in her gym. Hallback returned the favor with a solid thumping.
4 round Women’s Welterweight BoutMolly McConnell, 141 lbs (now 1-0) of Portland, Oregon is a popular favorite in the pacific Northwest and drew a substantial contingent of fans to see her pro debut with a unanimous decision victory over Tracy Carlton (now 0-2-1) of Compton, CA. McConnell, a National Golden Glove, PAL and Ringside champ, came into the bout with a wrenched back and started stiffly but gradually warmed into her power punching rhythm. The tall, rangy Carlton was willing to mix until a McConnell body shot in the second round reduced her to defensive maneuvers. McConnell’s body attack drove Carlton along the ropes for what had to be painful stretches in the second and third round, but Carlton managed to survive to the final bell. All three judges saw it as 40-36 for McConnell. The famed Jackie Kallen manages McConnell as well as Chevelle Hallback and was a prominent attraction for fans at an event that included Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini signing autographs.
4 round Light Heavyweight BoutMarcus Pernell, 175 lbs (now 2-0, 2 KO’s) of Portland, Oregon stopped Raul Talamentes, 173 lbs (now 0-2) of Stockton, CA when Talamentes fell to his knees and his corner tossed in the towel at 2:26 of the first round.
6 round Jr. Middleweight BoutRudy Lovato, 156 lbs (now 19-25-4, 5 KO’s) of Albuquerque, New Mexico fought to a messy but equally matched draw with Steve Valdez, 158 lbs (now 19-33-3, 12 KO’s) of Denver, Colorado.
June 4, 2004
Chinook Winds Casino & Convention Center,Lincoln City, Oregon
Referees: Jim Erickson, Dave Hagen, Jeff Macaluso
Judges: Greg Baker, Trevor Lewis, Denis Ryan, Tom Sporar
Regulation: The Siletz Tribal Athletic Commission
