Virginia Police Officer To Fight For NABA Title
By Robert Brizel, Real Combat Media Correspondent
New York, NY (February 5, 2013)–In a stunning turn of events caused by a late injury to light heavyweight prospect Dennis Hasson, southpaw super middleweight and light heavyweight prospect Frankie ‘Freight Train’ Filippone, a Norfolk Virginia police officer highlighted in Real Combat Media stories as ‘The Punching Policeman’ will step in at the last minute and fight Kevin Engel for the vacant interim WBA North American Boxing Association Light Heavyweight championship on Friday, February 8, 2013, at Chase Center in Wilmington, Delaware. The 10 round NABA title bout will be the main event of a seven bout card which also features such boxers as Ray Robinson and Alberto Morales in a ten rounder), Ryan Belasco, Natasha Spence, Bryne Green, Lamont Singletary, Joey Tiberi, Moses Molina, Curtis Morton and Luis Hernandez.
According to Filippone, “It’s an honor to have this tremendous opportunity in front of me. We’re looking forward to stepping in the ring on February 8 and coming home with the belt. This is what we trained for. SO now it’s the training and the hard work. The hard work is the reward, and the reward is the NABA title belt.”
Filippone won a six round decision over Richard Stamino at Dover Downs Casino on February 18, 2013, and returned to the gym two days later for a scheduled bout in Chesapeake, Virginia, on February 18, at the Virginia Entertainment Center.
Filippone’s bout against Engel, 20-6, a boxer and Mixed Martial Artist from Saint Louis, Missouri, will be Filippone’s sixth bout in 12 months. Now 12-2, Filippone has been on a hot streak and could pole vault Filippone into the World Boxing Association’s world number 15 light heavyweight ranking position now held by Nadjib Mohammedi of France if he gets by Engel.
The world ranking could possibly propel the Virginia policeman into a WBA world title bout with WBA World Light Heavyweight champion Beibut Shumanov of Kazakhstan, now fighting out of Las Vegas, Nevada. Shumanov last defended his WBA world title for the fourth time on June 2, 2012, by 12 round decision of Enrique Ornelas, but that bout was over eight months ago, and a world title defense by Shumanov is due in the Spring of 2013.
Looking at Engel’s 20-6 record, Engel has beaten only one fighter with a winning record in the past five years. 13-0 Anthony Smith lost to Engel at Dover Downs by second round stoppage in August 2012. Engel has failed to win a single round in the only two ten round bouts on his record. Engel lost every round against 10-0 Blake Caparello in Australia in a ten rounder held in September 2012, and was knocked out in the second round by 22-0 Anthony Dirrell in a California bout in July of 2011 which was scheduled for ten rounds. Engel was knocked out by Marcus Johnson and Edwin Rodriguez in 2010. In 2009 he was knocked out by Dallas Vargas. 4-11-3 journeyman Mike Word stopped Engel in three rounds in 2008. Despite his high win total, Engel’s ability to defeat a quality foe like Filippone in a ten rounder is suspect.
Prediction: Filippone by ten round unanimous decision, winning all ten NABA championship rounds against MMA tough guy Engel-who punches too slow to compete as a boxer on the world class level, and who has trouble with southpaws.
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