Brewer Wins Easy Decision at Trop

Paul-John Ramos

01.02 - Atlantic City, New Jersey - In the main event of a program drawing catcalls as matters wore on, 33-year-old Charles Brewer (39-9, 27 KOs) scored a comfortable victory over 30-year-old Etienne Whitaker (27-9-2, 16 KOs) via ten-round unanimous decision at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino.

Brewer had last fought on August 2nd, when he forced a sixth-round TKO of Scott Pemberton in Ledyard, Connecticut. That fight was an unexpected struggle for Brewer, as the smaller Pemberton worked around the former super middleweight titleholder's attack and decorated his face with cuts. But Brewer, who was in need of a decisive win to sustain his title hopes, had none of Pemberton's offense to deal with this time around. Whitaker, an undercard fighter who has met with journeymen such as Jose Luis Rivera, Demetrius Jenkins, and Derrick Whitley, pressed the issue only at moments and had none of Brewer's physical strength despite his background as a light heavyweight.

Whitaker seemed a threat in the opening round, when he landed some straight punches to Brewer's head during the final minute. But Brewer, 169, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, had things sorted out by round two and made use of the body work that has rendered past success. By round five, Whitaker had slowed down considerably and spent most of the way on defense. It was not until round eight that Whitaker, 171, Warren, Ohio, again traded punches with Brewer, well after The Hatchet had been dealt an easy night. In a bout with no knockdowns, the judges scored it 99-92, 98-92, and 97-93, while East Side Boxing scored it 98-93, round two being even.

With the super middleweight division as one of boxing's weakest, Brewer has several options for the coming months. He can always try Joe Calzaghe or Sven Ottke again, while the stock of Antwun Echols, whom he knocked down three times but was knocked out by in May 2001, keeps rising. August 2003 will mark Brewer's 14th year as a professional and the door remains slightly ajar.