It is said that an Olympic medallist turning pro starts his career at 10-0; if that’s true, then a young man skipping the open division of the amateurs to go pro uses his first ten fights gaining experience he missed in the open division experience. There is no need to rush this young man as he has yet to start his senior year in high school.
Prospect Ronald Cruz Faces Biggest Test to Date Against Carrasquillo
Undefeated welterweight prospect Ronald Cruz will face tough trial horse Doel Carrasquillo on his home turf of Bethlehem, PA this Saturday looking to improve to 13-0. This fight represents a solid challenge for the young Cruz and should provide a good measure of where he stands. Carrasquillo is coming off perhaps his biggest win with an upset of highly-touted Denis Douglin in Salisbury, MD in February. Carrasquillo beat Douglin at 154 pounds, which he told Maxboxing was a much more comfortable weight for him. For this contest, he is going back down to 147. That could very well be the difference in this fight.
Speaking of Denis Douglin…
Douglin looks to put that loss behind him as he returns to the ring on July 9th on the Paul Williams vs. Erislandy Lara undercard. His opponent remains TBD but it’s a safe bet he will take a step down in competition to recover from his knockout loss. Douglin himself understands the importance of win stating, “This sport is my life and I know another loss will destroy me,”
Dannie Williams Headlines Loew/Pavlik Debut Promotion
As mentioned last week in the Regional Report, Jack Loew and Kelly Pavlik will host their first promotional card this Friday outside of the Covelli Center. Lightweight Dannie Williams, 17-1 (14), headlines the evening’s action against Oscar Cuero, 13-6-0 (10). Williams is an example of a fighter who reached a certain level before finally deciding to give 100% to the sport. Now living in Youngstown, with a renewed focus on his boxing career, he’s one to watch.
Jimmy Lange Wins Tune-Up
Northern Virginia’s former “The Contender” star Jimmy Lange returned to action last Saturday against the shopworn Mike McFail in Virginia Beach in a tune-up fight that cannot be considered much more than paid sparring. Lange, 36-4-2 (24), is preparing for his next event at George Mason University’s Patriot Center, set for September 10th. Lange faced the same McFail last year in a stay-busy fight as well, preparing for a Patriot Center event. McFail currently stands at 1-33-1 in his previous 35 bouts. However, it stands to reason that Team Lange had no intentions of risking anything in front of 200 fans and jeopardizing his Patriot Center show where he still can put 3,000 in the arena.
I doubt Lange will face any junior middleweight of relevance come September but his fights are usually well-matched and exciting. Plus, the shows organized by Team Lange are very important to the DC boxing scene.
Raymond Serrano Added to July 15th “Friday Night Fights” Card
Philly prospect Raymond Serrano has been added to the Roseland Ballroom card on July 15th. Serrano is young man with an excellent set of tools and through proper development, could make some waves in the welterweight division. His opponent is TBD as well; whether he will appear on the televised portion of the card is still up in the air.
