September 16, 2006 LCO Casino Hayward, WI: Saturday’s “Night of Champions” boxing card at the LCO Casino in Hayward, WI became a night of knockouts as all 5 of the fights ended inside the scheduled distance. In the Main Event, Bobby Gunn captured the IBA World Cruiserweight Championship with a 7th round stoppage of veteran Shannon Landberg..
The “Sandman’s” corner threw in the towel at the :36 second mark after Landberg absorbed some brutal punishment in round 6 and the ferocious attack from Gunn continued at the beginning of round 7. Landberg, to his credit, was a brave warrior throughout the contest and the crowd in attendance were loudly appreciative of the performance by both fighters. Gunn, ever gracious in victory, praised his vanquished foe saying, “Shannon Landberg is one tough and courageous fighter. He took some unbelievable body shots and showed a lot of heart and class throughout the fight.” The fight featured tons of action as both fighters had their moments. From the opening bell both Gunn and Landberg lived up to their respective prefight promises to give their all in the fight. While there were no official knockdowns in the match, there were several heated exchanges where both fighters landed solid, hard shots. At the end of the contest, Landberg’s right eye was swollen shut, his left eye was badly bruised and he received a busted front tooth for his efforts. Gunn did not come away unmarked, either. He was cut above both eyes and injured his right hand early in the fight, forcing him to rely on his jab and famous left hook, essentially winning the fight one-handed. Referee Steve Smoger gave his usual stellar performance as the third man in the ring, as the fight had some moments of rough action. The fighters exchanged power shots at close range and there were a few low blows as the action got heated. Midway through the bout, as both fighters punched, bobbed and weaved on the inside, Gunn was deducted a point for illegal use of his head. All in all, considering the drama surrounding Gunn’s last shot at the IBA strap, Steve Smoger lived up to his reputation as one of, if not THE finest referee in the business.
The Co-Main Event featured the much anticipated return of Canadian fighter Mike “Prime Time” Post. He took on Brian Paul of Ohio for the LCO Casino Super Lightweight Championship. Brian Paul, for all of his prefight jaw-boning about his intentions to KO “Prime Time”, had an obvious change of heart and strategy once he tasted the power of the super slick and athletic Post. Although Paul fought bravely, he had his nose broken and he bled for most of the 2 rounds that the fight lasted. Post deposited Paul to the canvas 3 times en-route to picking up the newly formed LCO Casino Title with a spectacular performance. With his usual flair for entertainment, “Prime Time” entered the ring by jumping over the top rope, to the delight of the crowd. Both fighters wasted no time in getting the action started, but Post’s superior quickness and power proved to be too much for Paul to overcome. It is obvious that Team Post and their new trainer, Chris Johnson, are a match made in heaven. Chris Johnson, known as “Mr. Showtime” when he fought professionally, is one of boxing’s up and coming trainers and his addition to the Post camp appears to be a perfect fit.
The third Championship bout of the evening featured Jonathan “J.J.” Corn fighting for the LCO Casino Light Heavyweight Belt against Elvin “No Mercy” Versey, although it was Corn who dished out the punishment and showed no mercy to “No Mercy”. Some well placed body shots by Corn put the south-paw Versey on the run early. After winning the Championship, the ever gregarious Corn addressed the fans in attendance and gave an emotional tribute to his fans and to his Native American Heritage.
In undercard action, talented and undefeated Welterweight Raul “The Matador” Gracia of Minneapolis, MN scored a stoppage victory when undercard referee Mark Nelson rescued Milwaukee’s “Jazzy” Justin Danforth after he was the recipient of numerous sharp, snapping head shots early in their 4 round encounter. Gracia is a fine fighter that showed he has some very impressive ring skills. Look for Gracia to be making some noise in the Welterweight division in the near future.
In the opening fight of the evening, Indiana’s own Brian “The Giant” Veach, 6′ 5″ and 349 pounds scored a :45 second KO over Toughman Champion and debuting Heavyweight Ragelio “Downtown” Brown. The end was swift as the heavy-handed Veach made short work of his opponent with some well placed body shots that set-up the finishing punch to Brown’s head. Although Brown was able to get to his feet, he was quickly disposed of by virtue of the third knockdown of the bout.
The card was the first in a series of fights that the LCO Casino plans to host over the coming months in association with Rock Solid Boxing.