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12/16/2007 Archived Entry: "McGee Routs Jackson, White Stops Galvan at the Majestic Star!"
McGee Routs Jackson, White Stops Galvan at the Majestic Star!
Report and photos by Juan C. Ayllon at ringside
McGee (left) drills Jackson in the main event
GARY, Ind., December 14, 2007—There were punches aplenty at the Majestic Star Casino this night, as Gary’s very own Mary McGee (140 lbs., 12-0, 7 KO’s) led her cast of boxers in entertaining the cheering throng. She jabbed, crossed, and battered game, but outclassed Leora Jackson (144 ¾ lbs., 2-10) over eight rounds, ultimately winning by unanimous decision.
Action aside, the event highlighted the fact that boxing is a tight-knit community, as McGee’s stable mates Don Moore and Michael “The Midnight Stalker” Walker egged her on against this invader from Memphis, Tennessee. Round by round, Moore could be heard shouting instructions over the roar of the crowd: “Jab her to the body—pop, pop, pop! That’s it! Now, throw the uppercut!”
Jackson (right) fires back
True, Jackson slugged back in spots and never stopped trying. However, McGee used equal parts talent, superior speed, and athleticism in turning Jackson, raking her up and down, and forcing to cover in a dominating performance.
McGee (right) on the attack in close
“Mary fought a good fight, she fought a decent fighter and took it to her,” said former light heavyweight boxer Guy Solis. “Mary backed her up all night, and moved out of the way of [Jackson’s] punches.”
Judges scored the bout 60-54 all for a well-earned unanimous decision victory for McGee, who holds the North American Boxing Council’s women’s light welterweight title.
Kurt Spivey served as referee.
McGee (right) keeps her guard up as she prepares to unleash another attack
Afterwards, Mary said, “I fought the girl before and I thought she’d be a good fight. My plan was to box her and keep my hands up. We fought about a year ago and she caught me with a good shot...and I wobbled a bit.
“I’m proud of myself and I feel pretty good. I wasn’t coming here expecting a knockout. I’ve got plans on going out of town—probably Las Vegas or California because I want a shot at a world title.”
She continued, “I want to be the best. When they think of the best, I want my name to pop in their head—just roll off a person’s tongue.”
In the meanwhile, McGee can content herself with owning the NABC women’s Light Welterweight title trinket.
All-time lightweight great Benny Leonard once said that in childhood boxing matches, he took worse beatings from his buddies—who served as seconds and roughed him up in between rounds—than his opponents. The same might be true for chums and stable mates Jermaine White and Ruben Galvan, who fought in the co-main event.
White (left) connects with a left hook to Galvan's head as referee Kurt Spivey looks on
In their hotly contested, but one-sided rematch, Merrillville, Indiana’s “Too Sweet” Jermaine White (144 ¼ lbs., 15-3, 8 KO’s) dominated good buddy “Modern Day Warrior” Ruben Galvan (145 ½ lbs., 27-11-3, 10 KO’s)—who hails from Hammond, Indiana—battering and stopping him in the seventh round.
In that fateful round, White repeatedly staggered and had Galvan stumbling with lefts and rights to the head.
Referee Kurt Spivey waved the bout off at 2:44 into the seventh round, garnering White a stoppage victory.
Galvan (left) traps White on the ropes and attacks
Prior to that point, White consistently beat Galvan to the punch, out-landing him easily four to one. Nevertheless, in the early rounds, following a pounding, Galvan would storm back with looping hooks to the body and clubbing shots to the head. However, as the bout progressed, the accumulation of blows began taking their toll.
Their previous encounter—held last February—resulted in a unanimous eight round victory for White.
Afterwards, an elated White said, “It’s payback for all those bull crap fights I’ve had. It’s time to show the world that I’m one of the fastest fighters in the world in my division!”
Moore (left) presses in on Sanders
Gary, Indiana’s lightweight slugger Don Moore (13-0-1, 10 KO’s) had a much more difficult bout than expected against Ft. Wayne, Indiana’s Reggie Sanders (12-41-5, 2 KO’s): Perhaps inspired by Matt Short’s upset win over Jimmy Perez earlier this evening, Sanders jarred Moore with a couple rights to the head in the first round as Moore looked to walk through him.
Sanders (right) fires back to the midsection of Moore
The harder and more effective puncher, Moore found himself in the unfamiliar position of rising on his toes, moving around and covering more in dealing with Sanders’ sharp and sometimes hurtful counterstrikes.
Moore (right) attacks, as referee Eric Fetzer looks on
In the sixth, Moore jarred Sanders repeatedly with rights. Just as it appeared a stoppage victory was imminent, Sanders jarred him with a vicious right and turned the tables. It was now Moore trapped and covering in a corner as the bell rang.
Sanders (left) jars Moore with a left to the chin
In the eighth and final round, Moore rallied, ripping lefts and rights to the body and searing rights up top. He knocked Sander’s chin up in the air with a smashing right. Surging, he came on strong. Once again, Sanders stormed back, forcing Moore to the ropes where they slugged furiously until the final bell.
Moore (left) traps Sanders in a corner
The judges scored the bout 79-73 all for Don Moore. Eric Fetzer served as referee.
“Great opponent, great fight!” said a terse, but happy Moore. “Next step to stardom. I love it!”
Perez (right) goes down from a surprise right hand as referee Fetzer steps around and Short looks on
In the upset of the evening, Garrett, Indiana’s Matthew Short (3-9, 2 KO’s) stopped Hammond, Indiana’s Jimmy Perez, Jr. (175 ½ lbs., 2-0, 1 KO) in the first round.
Short attacks with a fury following the first knockdown
Seemingly en route to a stoppage victory, Perez was knocked down with a searing right to the jaw. Rising, Perez was pummeled and dropped again with another right in a corner. Unsteady during his eight count, Perez was waved off by referee Eric Fetzer.
“Jimmy’s stance was good, but it was that once-in-a-blue moon chance: He dropped that right hand too much and one wild, flailing punch caught him right between the eyes,” said ring announcer Joe York. “His eyes closed. I think his body was telling him he got punched—that’s how a body reacts to a concussive blow. He fell down. In getting up, he probably got up too quickly; that second blow got him. If those guys fought again, it would probably be a different outcome.
“Matthew was fighting with a lot of aggression—he had a bad day and he took it out [on Perez]. I’d like to see those guys fight again and see if that was a lucky punch. From where I was sitting, it looked like Jimmy dropped his guard a little bit and through Matthew’s flailing, he caught him.”
Short stands over Perez after the second knockdown
“He got hit and it changed the whole complexion of that match.”
Either way, a good upset is good for boxing now and again: It keeps things interesting and serves notice that anything can—and sometimes does—happen in the ring.
Short (above) went long and shocked all with his TKO win over Perez, Jr.
“I hit him with the jab, lifted his head up, and connected with the right," said a beaming Short afterwards. “That’s all she wrote!”
Greenwood (left) and Dowdy mix it up above, and below, Greenwood pursues Dowdy to the ropes
In his pro debut, Merrillville, Indiana’s super middleweight Frantoine "The Tiger" Greenwood (171 lbs.) dominated Memphis, Tennessee’s Tyrone Dowdy (165 lbs., 2-12, 1 KO) in a rough and tumble four rounder.
Greenwood suffered a cut over his left brow from a clash of heads in the first, a round where he otherwise appeared to be dictating.
In the third, Dowdy was rocked with a sharp right mixed in with a deluge of blows, calling for a standing eight count. Dowdy was also penalized one point.
Greenwood's corner tends to him after the fight
Early in the fourth, Dowdy sprung at Greenwood, seeking to catch him coming in. However, by and large, it was a game of cat and mouse, as Greenwood tried taking Dowdy out with single right hands and Dowdy did his best to survive. In a sense, Dowdy achieved his objective, lasting the distance as judges scored the bout unanimously 40-34 for Greenwood.
Summed up, One in a Million Boxing and its corps of boxers served up punches aplenty and first-rate entertainment this evening, giving the audience something to jaw about long after the last bell. And, as Matthew Short said, “That’s all she wrote.”
Left to right: Popular fighters Marty Jakubowski, Michael "The Midnight Stalker" Walker, and Guy Solis at ringside
Announcer Joe York, seen here with his fiance at ringside
Michael Walker (right) with his trainer, Carlos
Guy Solis visits with the ringcard girls
