Steve Butler maintained his clean slate in the super middleweight division on Thursday, knocking down Stephane Fondjo four times en route to a ninth-round stoppage at Casino de Montreal in Montreal.
Butler, 37-5-1 (31 KOs), finished matters in the final moments of the ninth when a right hand followed by a wide left hook sent the Cameroon native Fondjo into the ropes for what was ruled the fourth knockdown of the fight. The wavering in Fondjo’s legs persuaded referee Martin Forest to halt the bout, sending Butler to his third straight victory by stoppage and the 27-year-old Fondjo, 14-2-1 (9 KOs), to his first-ever loss by stoppage.
The knockout was just the fourth for Butler after the eighth round, as he continues to show improved stamina since moving up in weight three fights ago, following his stoppage loss to Patrice Volny.
Butler, a two-time world title challenger from Montreal, got off to a hot start, scoring a knockdown to establish an early lead. Fondjo, who was fighting for the fourth time in Canada, was not easily deterred, storming back in the second round with activity that kept Butler honest. After a less convincing knockdown in which Fondjo’s knees were ruled down, Fondjo began to take over the fight in the middle rounds, testing Butler’s chin with strong right hands. With the fight’s outcome hanging in the balance, Butler once more dropped Fondjo in the eighth before finishing matters a round later.
The fight headlined a card promoted by Eye of the Tiger Management.
In the co-featured bout, Jhon Orobio blasted out South Africa’s well-traveled Xolisani Ndongeni, dropping him twice in the second round to improve his unbeaten record to 16-0 (14 KOs). Orobio – a native of Cali, Colombia, who is now based in Montreal – overwhelmed Ndongeni, 33-8 (19 KOs), with overhand rights and short hooks, sending the 35-year-old gatekeeper to the earliest defeat of his 15-year pro career.
Earlier in the night, Canadian Olympic bronze medalist Wyatt Sanford maintained his unbeaten record, moving to 5-0 (2 KOs) with a unanimous decision over Petr Novak, 3-1-1 (2 KOs). The scores were 60-54 on two cards and 59-55 on the third.
Ryan Songalia is a reporter and editor for BoxingScene.com and has written for ESPN, the New York Daily News, Rappler, The Guardian, Vice and The Ring magazine. He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at ryansongalia@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ryansongalia.
