IOWA CITY, IA (May 3, 2010) Fight fans in Iowa City were treated to a display of four of boxing’s finest prospects on Saturday night, May 1st, as TKO Boxing Promotions presented bouts featuring Mikael Zewski, Terence Crawford, J’Leon Love and Michael Finney at the Johnson County 4-H Fairgrounds. In the fight of the night, welterweight Mikael Zewski of Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada battled St. Joseph, Missouri native Alex DeLeon over four blistering rounds..
Displaying excellent boxing skills, the 21 year old Zewski, was able to continuously rock the aggressive DeLeon with counter punches. Utilizing a very solid left hook, straight right combination throughout the fight, Zewski scored well during the back and forth battle that had the crowd on their feet throughout the fight. Displaying a granite chin, DeLeon took Zewski’s power shots from both hands and kept on coming, but Zewski’s ability to block, slip and counter proved the difference in the fight.
Zewski had DeLeon badly hurt towards the end of the fourth with a left hook, straight right combination, but the very game DeLeon stayed on his feet and finished the round.
Scores at the end of the outstanding back and forth battle were 40 X 36 twice and 39-37, all for Zewski who improved to 3-0-0 (2KO’s), while the 25 year old DeLeon moved to 2-2-1 (2KO’s).
Sensational lightweight prospect Terence Crawford improved to 11-0-0 (8KO’s), with a terrific performance against Tennessee veteran Marty Robbins. Using the first round as a feeling out round with his piston like jab, Crawford dropped Robbins with a brutal right hook to the head in the second, following by another knockdown later in the round from a smashing right uppercut to the head.
In the third stanza, Crawford dropped Robbins for the third and final time with a crunching left hook to the body. Time of the stoppage was 0:51 of the third. The loss dropped Robbins’ record to 23-46-1 (15KO’s).
Detroit’s J’Leon Love wasted no time showing why he’s a future force in the middleweight division, dropping Iowa veteran Jeremy Marts with his first punch of the fight, a battering ram like overhand right hand. Love would drop Marts a total of eight times in the round from an array of power shots before the bout was waved off at the 1:49 mark of the first.
The 22 year old Love improved to a perfect 4-0-0 with four knockouts while Marts’ record fell to 5-10-0 (3KO’s).
Love will return to the ring at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, CT on Saturday, May 22nd on the undercard of the Peter Manfredo Jr./Angel Hernandez IBO Middleweight Title Bout.
Smiths Station, Alabama native, Michael Finney brought the heat from the opening bell as he continuously rocked Bobby Larson under a torrent of devastating punches in the neutral corner. Punctuated by a massive straight right hand, the 18 year old Finney earned the stoppage at the 0:47 mark to improve to 3-0-0, all by first round knockout. Larson falls to 0-3-0.
Hot prospect Michael Oliveira remains unbeaten with 10th KO in 12 fights
MIAMI (May 4, 2009) – Brazilian middleweight prospect “Chairman of the Board” Michael Oliveira kept his unbeaten record intact, stopping rugged 29-fight veteran Jessie Davis in the fourth round, last Saturday night at Miccosukee Resort in Miami.
Oliveira (12-0, 10 KOs), who only turned 20 last week, is the heir apparent to retired Brazilian boxing star Acelino “Popo” Freitas. Michael hadn’t fought since December but had been specifically working at the Normandy Gym with his trainer, Danny Hawk, on setting-up his big right had with stiff jabs.
All of Oliveira’s hard work in the gym paid dividends this past Saturday as he hammered Davis, opening a cut over his left eye that progressively got worse, until referee Tommy Kimmons halted the action at 1:10 of the fourth frame with a game Davis still standing.
“I felt great,” Oliveira said. “I’d been away five months but, once I got in the ring, other than being a little nervous at first, I forgot about everything but fighting my opponent and taking care of business. My punches were straighter and I didn’t go out there looking for the kill. I’ve learned to be patient, something I haven’t always been in the past, and strategized during the fight. They say don’t worry, it’ll come, and it did.”
Davis, to say the least, is extremely tough. He’s also somewhat of a gatekeeper for prospects having fought Keith Thurman, Joey Hernandez and many other young, up-and-coming contenders like Oliveira.
“I don’t know what his head is made of but even my knuckles started to hurt,” Michael noted. “I consider myself a strong puncher and hit him with everything, but he never hit the canvas. He has a very strong chin. After the fight he told me he’d never been hit so hard.”
Oliveira’s next fight is tentatively scheduled for early June at Miccosukee. He may have another fight leading up to his homecoming, August 7th, with the Miami resident fighting for the first time where he was born, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Go to www.MichaelOliveira.com for more information about Michael. Oliveira’s valued sponsors include The Confianca Moving, The Beira – Mar and Pro 1 from Sao Paulo, Dumonde Travel (Michael’s official travel agency) and the multi-national fuel company, Shell.