“Vicious” Vincent Thompson Wins Big At Battle At The Boat 83, Jonte “Rock Steady” Willis Next?

by Charles White: Last Saturday, August 27th, at the 83rd Battle At The Boat, hosted by Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, WA and promoted by Brian Halquist Productions, heavyweight prospect “Vicious” Vincent Thompson (9-0 with 2 knockouts) kept his undefeated record by winning an impressive unanimous decision over Japan’s #1 rated heavyweight Masataka Takehara (now 6-5-3 with 2 knockouts).

Thompson, weighing in at 235 lbs for this bout, was in complete control over the course of the full 8 round bout as Takehara, weighing in at 240 lbs, could not mount an effective offense. The opening round was a cautiously fought, feel-out type round for both fighters as they studied each other for weaknesses. Vince displayed fast hands and a good jab as he danced around Takehara, who was content to stay on the ropes for a good part of the round and throw the occasional hook to the body. Takehara, who earned a draw with Alex Leapai, proved his chin is made of solid stuff as he took a solid 1-2 combination to the jaw from Vincent towards the end of the round and shook his head as if to say he was unphased. In the second round Masataka came out much more aggressively, looking to land one big shot on Vince, who gracefully danced around Takehara while flicking out a fast, accurate jab.

Round 3 saw Vincent being the much more active fighter as he continued to land solid jabs and the occasional straight right hand. While backed into a neutral corner, Masataka landed a sneaky left hook to Thompson’s head, but Vincent took the shot well and continued to control the action. Sweat was flying off Takehara’s head as it was snapped back repeatedly by Vincent’s quick jabs. After a brief clinch, Vince landed a blazing 1-2 combination and danced away from harm to close out the round. The fourth round saw the stocky Masataka pawing with a lazy jab that never met its target. Takehara began to look tired as Vincent fired off a triple jab that found its mark. Out of nowhere, Masataka exploded with a huge left hook bomb that just barely missed. Vince responded with a couple of combinations that kept Takehara at bay. Masataka, after initiating a clinch, began to work the body with some success and lunged forward to yet again miss with a big left hook. Thompson ended the round with a huge right hook to Takehara’s head. At the beginning of round 5, Masataka came out aggressively and landed a quick right hand on Vince, who took the shot with no trouble at all. After rising from a slip, Takehara continued to plod forward, but landed very little, while Vincent danced around him and fired out jabs.

In round 6, Masataka, looking very tired at this point, continued to look for one big shot to end the action early. The crowd screamed for Vincent to take advantage of Takehara’s fatigue, but the crafty Masa managed to avoid any big shots from Thompson. Takehara then exploded again with a big straight left and right hook that Thompson deftly avoided. At the close of the round, Vince landed a great hook off of a solid jab. Round 7 was a bit slower than previous rounds as both fighters seemed to tire and Masataka showed good defense as he plodded forward. Vince continued to throw good jabs and footwork. In the 8th and final round, both fighters showed renewed energy and landed big shots on each other. Vincent then dominated the rest of the round behind a good jab and right hand to keep Masataka at bay. With one final outburst, Takehara missed with a big hook right before the final bell. In the end, Thompson’s fast hands and cagey style proved to be too much for the overmatched Takehara. With all three judges scoring the bout 80-72 in favor of Vincent Thompson, the man known as “Vicious” improved his record to 9-0 with 2 knockouts. Masataka fell to 6-5-3 with 2 knockouts. After scores were announced, fellow Washington State heavyweight prospect Jonte “Rock Steady” Willis (8-1-1 with 3 knockouts) surprised the audience by storming the ring and announcing a heavily anticipated November 5th bout between himself and Vincent Thompson. After exchanging words in a heated staredown, both fighters were ushered away.

Undercard Action:

Cruiserweights: Pro Debutant Tommy Davis scored an exciting 2nd round knockout over fellow pro debutant Jose Rico. Big hook combinations, followed by a huge left hook finisher thrown by Davis dropped Rico in a neutral corner and ended the bout.

Welterweights: Randall Corpuz (now 1-1) won a hard fought 4 round decision over Nalo Leal (now 4-12-1). Corpuz, the bigger, stockier fighter, used his size advantage to overpower and outhustle Leal. This author would like to point out that Nalo Leal showed tremendous heart and courage throughout the bout by coming forward and never letting up despite taking huge shots from Corpuz. A very admirable effort on Leal’s part indeed. Scores were 39-37 twice and 40-36, all in favor of Corpuz.

Supermiddleweights: Mike “Imagine” Gavronski (now 3-0-1 with 3 knockouts) scored a 4th round tko victory over the now 2-4 (2 ko’s) Darren Anzai. This was an exciting fight in which Anzai had many moments of his own, but was eventually overpowered by the bigger Gavronski. Anzai used slick boxing and good counter-punching to befuddle his opponent, but took a standing 8-count in the 3rd round and was knocked out with a big right hand-left hook combo along the ropes at 35 seconds of the 4th round.

Light Welterweights: Aaron Schupp (2-2-2) and Edgar Zubia (1-0-1) battled to a 4 round majority draw, with scores being 39-37 for Schupp and 38-38 twice. Both fighters were very active with high punch outputs and good infighting abilities on display. Schupp was the more accurate puncher and had a tricky defense while Zubia was the more aggressive fighter, coming forward throughout the whole bout. Note: this author scored the bout 40-37 in favor of Schupp.

Light Welterweights: In the semi-main event Oscar Andrade (now 7-0 with 3 knockouts) won a hard fought, exciting 6 round unanimous decision over the tough as nails Michael Lucero (now 12-17-2 with 4 knockouts). Andrade used his superior height and reach advantage to outwork Lucero in a very exciting bout. Lucero showed a very cagey defense and iron chin as he battled back against Andrade. A scary-looking left uppercut from Andrade that dropped Lucero in the second round was perhaps the best moment of this action-packed bout. Andrade showed a very exciting style and should be one to look out for in the future.

All in all, Battle at the Boat 83 was a successful, fun-filled promotion put on by Brian Halquist Productions and hosted by Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, WA. The fighters all showed great heart and skill and should be commended for their efforts.

For questions and comments, to schedule an interview, or to simply chat about boxing, Charles White can be reached at cwhite1078@mysvc.skagit.edu or 360-333-5911.