By John G. Thompson: In the undercard of ShoBox: The New Generation’s broadcast from Bally’s in Atlantic City, New Jersey Don “Da Bomb” George 21-1-1 (18 KO’s) of Chicago, Illinois scored a first round knockout in his first fight since his first loss. George had been taken to school in a one sided beating by last minute replacement and underdog Francisco Sierra in July of last year. Cornelius “The Beast” White 16-1 (15 KO’s) from Houston, Texas looked intimidating on paper, being then undefeated with a fantastic knockout percentage, and coming off thirteen straight knockout wins – many in the first round. However, as ringside commentators Antonio Tarver and Steve Farhood mentioned, there was a noticeable lack of names on White’s resume. In fact, on closer inspection, White had only faced three fighters with winning records.
George threw that most simple of combinations – a left jab followed by a hard straight right – and the right landed perfectly, sending White to the canvas early in the first round. White got up, but George came in quickly throwing flurries until White went down again, after a left and right hook had connected to his jaw. White got up at the count of four, though clearly his legs were not all there. White could only block as the action continued, with George backing him into the ropes and throwing every bomb he could muster. Just as referee Randy Neuman went to step in, White went down again, making the decision to stop the fight easy for referee Neuman.
In the main event, Rico Ramos 19-0 (10 KO’s) from Pico Rivera, in Los Angeles, California continued to show excellent potential as he stepped up in class against Alejandro Valdez 23-5-3 (17 KO’s) from Sonora, Mexico. Ramos proved too elusive for Valdez, alternating between moving around the ring, dodging Valdez’s shots, and sticking punches along the way. The only critique of his performance in those early rounds was that Ramos would occasionally allow Valdez to back him into the ropes or corners, where Valdez could land with body shots.
By rounds five and six, however, Ramos started holding a bit too much, allowing Valdez to land to the body when in close. In the corner between rounds, Valdez’s corner told him to, “Go after him like a dog!” In round seven, Ramos again allowed himself to be backed into a corner, but Valdez would not let him out, taking the opportunity to exchange with Ramos. Valdez showed determination and continued after him for the remainder of the fight.
In the tenth and final round, a clash of heads sent Ramos to the canvas in pain. He got up and a cut over his left eye needed to be checked by the doctor. Something about the clash of heads woke Ramos up and when they resumed he came out firing, exchanging, connecting, and a brief fight broke out in the final minutes. Two judges scored it 97-93, and the other 98-92, all for Rico Ramos (I had it a little closer 96-94 for Ramos).