23.04.05 – By Frank Gonzalez Jr.: Friday night at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, Heavyweights Dominic “Southern Disaster” Guinn (25-2-1-18 KO’s) and Friday “The 13th” Ahunayu (20-3-2-11 KO’s) faced each other in what may have been one of the least entertaining fights I’ve seen on FNF-and I’ve seen a few. Neither fighter did enough to win a single round convincingly. In the end, after ten boring rounds, the Judges scored 97-93 and 95-95 twice, rendering it a Majority Draw.
After rubbing my eyes and several yawns, I tallied up my scorecard. Forget about the ten-point-must system in scoring, I had six of ten rounds even at 9-9, because I didn’t think either guy won those rounds. Guinn won the second and third rounds and Ahunayu won the fourth and eighth rounds. I also had it a Draw, but by a score of 92-92. Dominic Guinn gave the impression that he would rather be doing something else for a living.
Guinn didn’t throw many punches, forget about combinations, he was quick to clinch and he was falling forward after jabbing and never showed any sign of a killer instinct. THIS is the guy we were all so high on just two short years ago..
Guinn rose to fame in June of 2003, when he came out of nowhere and TKO’d Michael Grant in the seventh round. Grant was 38-2 at the time and looked like a man who didn’t want to fight anymore. Guinn proved too much for the gigantic Grant to handle and became a household name among hardcore fight fans with an open eye to ANY new blood at HW who could put on a good show. Guinn was not very big for a HW but he showed good fundamentals and a desire to win.
Exactly three months later, Guinn returned to the ring and faced fellow Prospect, Duncan Dokiwari (22-1). Guinn gave a spirited performance against a game opponent and won the fight by Unanimous Decision. Afterwards, fans were speaking highly about Guinn, the new sliver of excitement in an otherwise dull division.
Two months later, instead of moving up, Guinn moved backwards and took on a soft opponent in Derrick Banks, who had lost four of his last five and had a record of 20-10 coming into the fight. Banks was floored in the first round but lasted the full ten rounds and though Guinn won by UD, his stock was going down. It was not an exciting fight.
In March of 2004, Guinn stepped up and faced Monte Barrett (29-3) in front of his hometown fans in Arkansas. He lost by Split Decision. Barrett landed the cleaner punches and outworked Guinn all night. The most obvious thing in that fight was Guinn’s reluctance to mix it up. He had the look of a guy who wasn’t sure of himself.
With wilting self-esteem, Guinn took on Phil Jackson (not the Basketball coach) in July 2004, who was 44-12 coming in. Guinn won by KO in the first round. That result may have helped Guinn’s ego but the fight did nothing to prepare him for his next bout.
In December of 2004, Guinn faced Serguei Lyakhovich (21-10) and lost by UD in a fight dominated by Lyakhovich, who outworked Guinn all night. Fading was notion that Guinn was going to be a major player in the HW division. Guinn’s lackluster performance reminded me of Michael Grant’s efforts in their fight back in 2003.
Flash forward to the present, April 22nd of 2005. Guinn faced Friday Ahunayu, a very limited opponent that does almost everything wrong, does not jab, never goes to the body, is slow, plodding and generally a lousy fighter that must’ve beaten up on the dregs of the division to get his 20 wins. All Guinn had to do was be busy and he’d have won the fight easily but-Guinn was about as lethargic as a sloth, never throwing more than around 30 punches per round and only landing a fraction of that.
Guinn looked like he forgot how to fight. He would jab and fall forward, allowing himself to get locked up in clinches every time they got close. It was painful to watch. The best part of this fight was when it was over.
Considering his last performance, it’s clear that Dominic Guinn no longer has the desire to fight for a living. He talked a good game before the fight but never translated any of that talk into action when it was time to fight. His last performance was a “Disaster.” He seems like a nice guy though and I wish him well and hope he finds an occupation that suits him.
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