Farmer Grows Win in Springfield!

Undefeated junior welterweight prospect Andrew “The Doo Man” Farmer of Manassas, VA scored a punishing first-round TKO over Cincinnati, OH’s Grant Messer in front of a standing-room only crowd of 500 at the ABC Sports Complex in Springfield, VA.

Farmer overcame roughhouse tactics from his opponent at the outset of the bout. Farmer and Messer found themselves imitating wrestlers as Messer put Farmer in a headlock and the two men tumbled to the canvas.

Once the actual boxing resumed, Farmer took over, pressuring Messer until he landed a crisp right-left combination that sent Messer to the canvas. Messer had difficulty getting up and referee Chris Wollesen stopped the contest at 1:59 of the round.

With the victory, Farmer raised his record to 3-0, three KO’s while fighting in front of his home crowd for the very first time. Farmer’s two previous bouts were in Martinsburg, WVA.

“I felt obligated to give the fans a good show,” Farmer said. “But it was hard because of his tactics. I had to stay composed and that’s what happened.”

The bout was Messer’s first since February 2003 and his record falls to 0-2.

In the co-feature, junior welterweight Jaime “The Punisher” Palma of Alexandria, VA returned to action after an 11-month layoff and won a four-round unanimous decision over Randy Dobbs of Cincinnati.

Palma used good hand speed to keep Dobbs at bay. Dobbs was never in serious trouble, but he could never catch up to Palma’s speed. Judges Phil Kornberg and Jerry Payne scored the bout 40-36 while Judge Brian Costello saw the bout 39-37.

Palma raises his record to 8-10-1, one KO while Dobbs falls to 5-20, three KO’s.

In other action on the card, undefeated Waynesboro, VA heavyweight Juan Robles survived a knockdown to win a close, four-round unanimous decision over “The People’s Champion” Jonathan Felton of Stafford, VA.

The bout was a toe-to-toe slugfest throughout with Felton taking the early advantage by dropping Robles with a right hook. Robles, however, worked his way back into the bout, trading shots with Felton for the rest of the contest. Both men eschewed defense while trying to land the big shots. All three judges (Kornberg, Payne and Costello) scored the bout 38-37.

Robles is now 3-0, two KO’s while Felton is 1-4, one KO.

In a bout billed as “The Battle of Front Royal, VA,” heavyweight Terry “T-Brick” Roy scored a punishing second-round TKO over Rob Monroe.

Roy, who was making his pro debut, turned the battle into a one-sided skirmish early by dropping Monroe with a stiff, straight right hand in the first round. In the second round, Roy used two more right hands to send Monroe to the canvas twice. Roy finished the job early in the third with yet another crushing right hand. Referee Vic Dewysocki saw enough at that point and stopped the bout at 24 seconds of the third.

With the loss, Monroe falls to 0-2.

Burke, VA junior middleweight “Sparkplug” Tommy Neal made his pro debut a successful one by easily winning a four-round unanimous decision over Montez Wilson of Philadelphia, PA.

Neal used solid shots to the head and body to keep Wilson in trouble in the bout. Wilson showed a solid chin and great resolve while Neal showed great patience for a rookie boxer. He never went for the knockout, but showed good skills while he peppered Wilson throughout the bout. Judges Kornberg and Costello scored the bout 40-36 while Judge Payne saw fit to give Neal a 10-8 round during the bout even though there were no knockdowns. Payne’s card read 40-35. With the loss, Wilson’s record falls to 0-6.

In the curtain-raising contest, Front Royal middleweight “Irish” Mike Carrigan used a blistering body attack to score a first-round TKO over the debuting Patrick Bozeman of Boston, MA. Carrigan’s repeated right hands to Bozeman’s body dropped him late in the first round. Bozeman lasted the round but then told referee Joe Bernier that he could not come out for round two.

Carrigan remained undefeated with the win raising his record to 2-0, two KO’s.

The promoter of the card was Scott Farmer, the father of Andrew Farmer.


RANDOM OBSERVATIONS: In conversations with Scott Farmer during the weeks leading to this card, he told me he didn't expect much of a crowd for this card. The crowd was outstanding. My number of 500 was an estimate, but there were people lining the walls in the ABC last night.

This proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that Northern Virginia has reemerged as a force for pro boxing along the Beltway. With the two previous cards at the Patriot Center, Han Kim's shows at the ABC and now last night, there is no doubt that boxing is alive and well in this part of the area.

This also may be true for other parts of the Commonwealth. There are already plans being made for shows in other parts of the state. Also, Virginia has an interesting South-North doubleheader planned for the weekend of October 6. Former heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe is scheduled to box in Norfolk on October 6 and then the Patriot Center show in Fairfax on October 7, which is being promoted by Joe Hensley, who is from Richmond. It is great to see the interest in this area.

As far as the card last night, I liked what I saw in Andrew Farmer. It must be hard to battle an opponent who wants to get rid of all boxing skills and just scrap. Farmer kept his composure and did what he was supposed to do.

Jaime Palma told me after the bout that he felt the ring rust. Palma has never been known as a puncher with a lot of pop, but the speed was still there.

The Juan Robles-Jonathan Felton bout could have gone either way. Felton let the fight get away from him, but you could argue he did enough to win. I thought, however, Robles won the fight.

Terry Roy looked sharp in his pro debut, battering the slower Rob Monroe.

I was REALLY impressed with Tommy Neal. He showed great composure in his bout with Montez Wilson. Wilson is a tough cookie but I liked the way Neal didn't press the issue. He was very patient.

Mike Carrigan looked strong in his early bout as well as he opened what was a very strong show.

On a personal note: Last night was special because I was able to spend time with a very good friend again. When I first joined Fightnews.com six years ago, one of my colleagues was a writer named "Bad" Brad Berkwitt. For two years, Brad and I sat side-by-side covering bouts in the area.

Brad left Fightnews and also spent time in Korea during his tenure in the US Navy. He then went on to write a very successful book compiling many of his top-flight interviews with people in and around the sport of boxing called "Boxing Interviews of a Lifetime."

Last night was the first time Brad and I sat together at a show in almost four years and it was great. Brad has his own website, www.ringsidereport.com which has a link on this site. It's a great site and you can also order his book on the site. I suggest that you do so!