By Francisco Salazar
MORE LIVE RESULTS TO COME..........
ARLINGTON, Texas - A clash of professional novices saw free swinging and an explosive professional debut that brought the crowd to life prior to the start of the primary scheduled telecast on Showtime.
Part of the excitement was the home team winning as 19-year old Jr. lightweight Malik Warren (1-0, 1 KO), 129 ½, of Baltimore, Maryland got the better of 25-year old Davonte McCowen (0-1-1), 130, of Lancaster, California in two exciting rounds. Warren came into the ring boldly wearing a crown and took as good as he got in the first.
The second round saw several exchanges as the noise of the engaging masses grew. Warren shook McCowen at mid-ring earlier in the round but it was an explosive flurry of shots along the ropes near a neutral corner that brought the end. Warren opened up with both hands as McCowen’s defenses left him and he started to hunch into the strands. Referee David Braslow jumped in to stop the action at 2:57 of round number two as Warren pounded his chest to announce his arrival in the paid ranks.
Unbeaten middleweight Austin Williams scored an impressive knockout victory over Jabrandon Harris (0-3) of Bryan, Texas.
The southpaw Williams dug a left hand to the body, dropping Harris face-first to the canvas, where he writhed in pain. Referee Roberto Chapa counted him out at 1:51. Williams, a blue-chip prospect, improves to 3-0, 3 KOs.
In an uneventful fight, heavyweight Joey Dawejko defeated Rodney Hernandez by unanimous decision. Both fought in spurts throughout the fight, with both doing little to engage the other.
Hernandez (13-8-2, 4 KOs) mounted a rally early during the sixth round, bringing cheers from the crowd. Dawejko was able to beat Hernandez to the punch during the final two rounds, connecting the more-telling blows. Scores were 96-94, 96-94, and 98-92 for Dawejko, who improves to 20-7-4, 11 KOs. The fight was a rematch of their split-decision draw from their April of 2017 clash.
Middleweight Nikita Ababiy was taken the distance for the first time in his career, defeating veteran Yunier Calzada by unanimous decision. Calzada (6-6-1, 1 KO) came to fight and had his moments, but Ababiy was the more-effective fighter.
Ababiy drew jeers from the crowd during the second half of the fight after attempting to land Bolo punches onto Calzada. All three judges scored the bout 60-54 in favor Ababiy, who improves to 6-0, 5 KOs.
Junior welterweight prospect Movladdin 'Arthur' Biyarslanov battered Solon Staley before stopping him in the third round. Biyarslanov (4-0, 4 KOs) staggered Staley midway through the opening round, but this shorter Staley (1-4) fought back, landing a few punches flush to the face of Biyarslanov.
In the third round, Biyarslanov staggered Staley with a combination. Moments later, Biyarslanov pinned Staley against the ropes, where he landed a left-right combination. Staley fell forward, sticking his arms down to the canvas to break his fall, but referee Roberto Chapa immediately stopped the bout at 1:18.
In the opening bout, middleweight Darius Bagley defeated veteran Carlos Dixon (1-14-1, 1 KO) by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the bout 39-37 in favor of Bagley, who was making his professional debut. Both fighters reside in the Dallas area.
Francisco A. Salazar has written for Boxingscene since September of 2012 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (Calif.) Star newspaper. He can be reached by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing