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01/14/2006 Archived Entry: "Sanders Shades Bowman, Ex-Amateur Stars Williams and Abraham Shine!"
Sanders Shades Bowman, Ex-Amateur Stars Williams and Abraham Shine!
By Juan C. Ayllon at Ringside
Photos by Jorge Bravo
Germaine Sanders (right) boxes carefully against Anthony Bowman
CICERO, IL, January 13—Germaine “Silky Smooth” Sanders looked to borrow a page from the late, great evasive heavyweight boxer Jimmy Young as he lived up to his nickname in winning a unanimous eight round decision over durable and obstinate Anthony “The Showman” Bowman.
Sanders began round one boxing carefully, ducking under blows and pasting his opponents face with a fast and accurate left jab. Sanders circled and boxed. However, he caught a heavy right and follow up left to the head by Bowman.
As the action heated up, Bowman right fist smacked hard on the side of Sanders’ head. Sanders held. Resuming, Sanders continued to pepper with the jab, touch occasionally with the right, and move to his left. He jarred Bowman's head with a follow-up right.
Round two, Sanders came out more aggressively. He dug vicious rights and lefts to the side. In turn, Bowman knocked his head back with a right and jarred with follow up blows, driving him to the ropes. Sanders mixed left and rights, but maintained a spearing jab. He dug a hard left hook to the side. He drilled a straight right to the solar plexus. As the two traded in at close range, Bowman caught him with a looping left to the face. Sanders tied up when Bowman repeated.
Standing in front of Bowman, Sanders shifted, ducked and used head movement to avoid most of Bowman’s looping blows.
Sanders moved side-to-side and speared with the jab in round three. He dug a right to the midsection. Bowman mainly missed, but landed the hard left and right occasionally. Sanders doubled up on the jab stiffly. He ducked, shimmied and bounced out of harms way. Slipping, however, he caught a stiff left square in the face from Bowman, which may have spelled trouble had Bowman hit harder.
Starting off round four, Bowman dug a right to the side and missed with a left to the head. Sanders literally said, “Pop, pop, pow!” as he peppered with a jab and landed a potent right to the chin. A hard jab snapped Bowman’s head back. Stepping things up, he snapped Bowman’s head back again with a searing one two. Bowman dropped a right over the top, but Sanders moved to the right unaffected. Shifting side to side, he sought angles, stepped smartly, and peppered. He rolled with a straight right as he continued to dominate.
Sanders works the jab overtime
Sanders continued the boxing clinic in rounds five and six. At one point, he dodged four ponderous lefts and rights and, as if to underscore his superiority, dug a series of thudding lefts and right to the body and smacking lefts and rights to the head, then boxed his way out. Bowman bounced a hard left off Sanders head as he momentarily trapped him on the ropes at rounds end.
In the sixth, Sanders continued to turn Bowman, spear with the jab to head and body, and duck, slip or step out of the way of Bowman’s incoming blows. Bowman bounced an overhand right off the top of Sanders’ head in the closing moments of round six.
While being abused with jarring jabs, Bowman caromed a heavy left off Sanders head early in round seven. Never the less, the abuse continued. Standing with Sanders chest to chest, Bowman dug a couple lefts and a clubbing right over the top that drew a warning from Referee Gerald Scott. Although out-boxed, Bowman smacked in a left uppercut at close range.
Like the grand finale of a Fourth of July fireworks show, in the eighth and final round, Sanders stepped up his attack, uncorking a fusillade of jarring left hooks and rights to head and body as he sought to terminate maters. However, Bowman didn’t cooperate, but stubbornly fired back with ill intent. Nonplussed, Sanders caught him with a stiff right, spun behind him, and peppered with more sharp lefts and rights to the face.
The judges scored the bout unanimously 80-72 for Germaine Sanders.
Commenting on his performance afterwards, Sanders said, “I rate it a C-plus because I got hit too much.”
With this win, Germaine Sanders, 151 lbs., stood at 26-3-0 and 17 knockouts, while Anthony Bowman, 157 lbs., slid to 7-19-2 and two knockouts.
On the under card, two former amateur standouts, Nino Abraham and Aaron Williams, roused the crowd with their scintillating performances.
Abraham (left) and Thomas swap blows
First, fighter-promoter Sammy Merza’s highly decorated former amateur star of a nephew, Ninos Abraham, raised a few eyebrows as he defeated a deceptively combative and durable Frederick Thomas in a pro debut that electrified the crowd.
Charging hard early in round one, the square jawed Abraham connected with a hard left hook, followed by a couple others in combination. However, Thomas wasn’t impressed, as he landed a stiff right off Abraham’s head that apparently raised a welt over the left eyebrow. Favoring the left hook, Abraham bounced a series of snapping lefts off Thomas’ head. However, rather than wilting, Thomas swung back furiously with both fists. The crowd cheered lustily as the two engaged in a frenzied exchange at rounds end.
Making an adjustment in round two, Abraham landed a whipping left hook to the head and, like that, darted out of the way of Thomas’ counter right. Circling wide, Thomas dug a hard right to Thomas body.
Thomas slipped to the canvas moments after catching a right hook to the head. Abraham smacked him with an innocuous left hook to the side of the head while down.
Resuming, the two traded in brief bursts and circled out. Abraham staggered Thomas with a left hook to the jaw. He jarred with another and circled out. Trapping Thomas in a corner, he bounced a hard right, then a left to the head. Hemming him in, he unloaded with both fists. However, Referee Matt Podgorski warned him for a low blow. Resuming, the two traded in brief, spirited bursts. Although close, the majority of effective blows appeared to belong to Abraham.
Reinvigorated in round three, a feisty Thomas banged in a heavy right to the pit of Abraham’s stomach and slammed a right off Abraham’s head. Up on his toes, he fired fast lefts and rights as Abraham sought to catch him. Stalking, Abraham momentarily stunned Thomas, knocking him back into the ropes with a potent left-right combination. Another jarring right drew a rigorous denial from Thomas, who shook his head, “No.” Abraham continued to pressure well, while Thomas sought to stem his surge with hearty rights and lefts.
In round four, Thomas bounced a jarring left hook off Abraham’s head. Abraham raised his arms to his side and taunted him to engage. Thomas obliged by bouncing a hard right off his face. The two jawed at each other as they sought with great gusto to impose their wills on one another.
Ninos Abraham (center) and Uncle Sam Merza (far right) celebrate the win
Thomas jarred with a looping left hook. Not to be outdone, Abraham walloped with his own left hook. A big right rolled Thomas’ head and a follow-up hook stunned him. Trapping him on the ropes, Abraham dug rights and lefts to head. A wild counter right sailed over his head, with the momentum sending Thomas sprawling to the ropes.
Seeking to finish with a flourish, Abraham pounced with both fists pumping, and caught a stiff right hook to the head. Undaunted, Abraham jumped on the turnbuckle jubilantly as the bell signaled the end of the fight moments later.
The judges scored the bout unanimously 40-36 for Abraham. With that, Ninos Abraham, 154 lbs., logged his first professional bout in the win column, while Frederick Dean Thomas, 152 lbs., fell to 0-1-2.
Aaron Williams wins by kayo in dramatic fashion
Second, undefeated cruiserweight prospect Aaron Williams—also a former amateur star—made short work of James Johnson, knocking him out inside one round.
Johnson remains in pain following the conclusion of the bout
Starting briskly behind a stiff jab, Williams connected with a hard left hook early on. Johnson countered with a stiff left hook of his own. Not to be outdone, Williams connected sharply with a hard left hook-right combination. Showing a definite edge in speed, he dug a left hook to stomach and head. As Johnson circled and reengaged, Williams unleashed a furious assault to head and body, burying a right uppercut to the body and finishing with a swift left hook to the head. Doubled over face down on the canvas, Johnson wasn’t going anywhere. Clutching his stomach in agony, he was counted out by Referee Gerald Scott at 2:35 into round one.
Christina Christian emerges victoriously in her bout versus Jeanine Tracy
Afterwards, manager Pat Doljanin said, “It was a right uppercut to the stomach that did it. He followed with a left hook to the head, but it was the right to the body that did it.”
Williams said, “I tried to box him like I said I would and pick my spots.”
Aaron Williams’ record rose to 6-0-1 and five knockouts, while James Johnson, 188 lbs., slipped to 9-21-2, and 11 knockouts.
Rounding out the show, Canadian female boxer Christiana Christian performed capably in stopping Milwaukee fighter Jeanine Tracy in one round.
Christian maintained the busier hands, jarring with the right hand several times and pumping steadily with both fists. Tracy covered and swung back hard in spots, while Christian did a good job of covering and holding when not opening up on her shorter and stockier rival. At rounds end, as Christian teed off, Tracy turned her back and covered, forcing Referee Matt Podgorski to wave off the bout at 1:59 into round one.
Weighing 192 lbs., Christian rose to 3-0 with three knockouts while Tracy, 193 lbs., fell to 3-9-0 and three knockouts.
All in all, Sammy Merza’s "Windy City Kayo" bouts proved an entertaining mix of smooth boxing, all-out action, and knockouts to serve up an intoxicating blend of the “Sweet Science” to those attending the bouts at Cicero Stadium. What more can a fight fan ask for on a Friiday night?
Germaine Sanders arrives at the Cicero Stadium with his significant other (Juan C. Ayllon photo)
Aaron Williams with CBZ photographer Jorge Bravo after the fights (Juan C. Ayllon photo)
Aaron Williams gives the "number one" following his victory, as (from left to right)
Pat Doljanin, Jesse Reid and Albert Falcon attend to him
An unidentified kid shadow boxes in the ring following the bouts
Nino Abraham wears his Chicago Cubs hat with pride following
his successful pro debut
Merrillville, Indiana junior welterweight Jermaine White
--who is looking at a possible nationally televised bout
this next month--chats on his cell phone
