Yuri Foreman is Back, and On The Attack
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent – Ringside
*Photo Credit: Robert Brizel
New York, NY (July 25th, 2013)– With legs moving as good as gold, former World Light Middleweight champion Yuri Foreman scored an easy eight round unanimous decision win over Jamaal Davis in the main event of an eight round card at Roseland Ballroom in New York City on Wednesday, July 24, 2013, promoted by Lou DiBella Entertainment and 50 Cent SMS Promotions televised on Broadway Boxing and broadcast over the internet at Gofightlive.
A moment of silence was observed by ring announcer David Diamante during the traditional ten count ringing of the bell in memoriam for Hall of Fame former World Welterweight, Light Middleweight and Middleweight Champion Emile Griffith, who died the day before at age 75. Griffith, Mr. Diamante noted, boxed 339 championship rounds at Madison Square Garden, the most in the history of The Garden, a record which will likely never be broken.
Foreman, now 31-2 with eight knockouts, Brooklyn, New York, scored his third consecutive comeback win after taking nearly two years off. Foreman had surgery to repair a torn Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and Meniscus and to remove torn cartilage around his knee joint, relating to an injury he incurred when he was 15 years old.
Davis, now 14-10, with six knockouts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has a good defense and most certainly gave a good accounting of himself, appearing in top condition and trying to win. It was just that Foreman, with superior height and reach advantage, and fast moving side to side movement going left and right, in and out, kept up a furious tempo and was a fast moving target. The shorter Davis was the pursuing cat, and Foreman was the rapidly moving jack rabbit. Foreman landed his straights consistently and kept busy all night. In the last three rounds, Foreman mixed in some hard power shots to the head of Davis.
Any chance Davis had of making a go of the fight one way or another ended in round five when an accidental clash of heads caused a bad cut to the corner of the right eye of Davis. The ringside doctor allowed the fight to continue, but clearly Davis was fighting for the final bell at that point, not to win. He got in a few good counters now and then, but Foreman was moving too often and too past for anything which connected to be of consequence. Davis went to the canvas in round eight, ruled a slip by referee Shada Murdaugh. By the final round, the bout had turned dirty, with both fighters throwing punches in clinches, but it was Salita scoring most of the clean blows with power shots.
In the post fight interview, promoter Lou DiBella stated the goal was to move Dmitry with comeback fights and get him to where he was before the injury. That being said, Salita could be ready for another world title fight by the end of 2013. So far, Salita appears to back in the attack mode. His rapid foot movement, when he is at his best, present a challenge even to the best of champions at 154 pounds because there appears to be no way to cut off the ring after he starts moving, a complex riddle Daniel Santos could not solve.
Result: Yuri Foreman Win 8 Jamaal Davis, Light Middleweight
Scoring: 80-72, 80-72, 80-72 for Foreman.
In the preliminary bout to the main event, unbeaten 6-0 female super bantamweight Irish Heather Hardy of Brooklyn, New York, scored her first stoppage win, a fourth round stoppage of Cassie Trost, now 1-2-2, Seattle, Washington. Hardy gave Trost a bad facial beating and bloody lip. An exhausted and badly beaten Trost wilted to the canvas in round four, and referee Sparkle Lee waved the bout off immediately as Trost had nothing left.
In a cautious cruiserweight match, Lou DiBella prospect Travis Peterkin of Brooklyn, New York went to 8-0, five knockouts, with a six round decision win over game but overmatched Hector Hernandez of Phoenix, Arizona, now 16-6-2, four knockouts. Both fighters threw single shot jabs, but Peterkin was clearly the busier fighter and the more accurate one. Hernandez missed wide a great deal, then held on for dear life and kept head butting, forcing Peterkin to get a glove between himself and Hernandez head in clinches. Hernandez, out of the ring for 22 months, was rusty and his timing was off, so he had to keep moving and stay off the ropes as Peterkin applied relentless press. Hernandez and Peterkin were both in top condition. Peterkin was the superior fighter, but Hernandez knew enough about how to hold, wrestle and survive. When the bout was over, Hernandez did well enough in defeat to get hired as a sparring partner for WBO World Middleweight champion Peter Quillin.
Boxers and celebrities in attendance included Amanda Serrano, Cindy Serrano, Monte Barrett, Paul Malignaggi, Steve USS Cunningham, Gabriel Tito Bracero, Ivan Redkach, Tommy Gallagher, Harold Lederman, and Rocky movies star Burt Young.
Undercard Results
Ytalo Perea KO 1 John Orr, Heavyweights (1:48)
Louis Rose Win 6 Akil Frederick-Auguste, Super Middleweights
Louis Cruz Win 4 Justin Robbins, Junior Welterweights (Robbins down in second)
Bryant Cruz Win 4 Nuwan Jayacody, Junior Lightweights
Travis Peterkin Win 6 Hector Hernandez, Cruiserweights
Emmanuel DeJesus Win 4 Khalik Memminger, Junior Middleweights
Heather Hardy TKO 4 Cassie Trost, Female Junior Featherweights (1:40)
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