Frederick, MD cruiserweight Larry "Hitman" Pryor scored his second consecutive first-round knockout at the SportsZone in Derry, NH on Saturday, November 14th. Pryor knocked out debuting Scott Lampert of Dover Plains, NY in just 78 seconds. Lampert was making a transition from Mixed Martial Arts to boxing.
On August 29th, Pryor scored a first-round TKO over Francisco Ariri Neto in the same SportsZone location. Pryor's record is 13-22, with seven KO's.
The King's Promotions card that was scheduled to feature Hagerstown, MD super middleweight "The Sexy Albanian" Genc Pllana taking on Khainell Wheeler at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, PA on Saturday, November 21st has been canceled due to new Covid-19 restrictions implemented by the city on Monday, November 16th. No new date has been given.
We have a group of Beltway Boxers that will be in bouts through the rest of November. Here is the schedule:
Saturday, November 14th, Hits 55, Covington, KY -- Baltimore, MD super bantamweight Glenn Dezurn will be in a six-round contest against veteran Dakota Laster of Hannibal, MO. Dezurn (11-2-1. seven KO's) looks for his third straight win at Hits 55. Last time out Dezurn won a four-round unanimous decision over Michael Gaxiola on December 14th. Laster (3-11-1, three KO's) has lost by knockout in his last three outings.
Saturday, November 14th, Sportszone, Derry, NH -- Frederick, MD cruiserweight Larry "Hitman" Pryor participates in a four-round bout against the debuting Scott Lampert of Dover Plains, NY by way of Poplar Bluff, MO. This will be the second straight appearance at the Sportszone for Pryor (12-22, six KO's). In his last outing, Pryor scored a first-round TKO over Francisco Ariri Neto on August 29th. Lampert will be trying to make a transition from Mixed Martial Arts where he is 1-0 as an amateur.
Saturday, November 21st, 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, PA -- Hagerstown, MD super middleweight "The Sexy Albanian" Genc Pllana will headline in a six-round contest against undefeated Khainell Wheeler of Bethlehem, PA. Pllana (8-2-1, four KO's) looks to bounce back from an eight-round unanimous decision loss to Maidel Sando on September 23rd in Los Angeles, CA. Wheeler (4-0, four KO's) has yet to get out of the first round in any bout. Wheeler needed just 37 seconds to knock out Patrick Pierre on December 14th in Harrisburg, PA.
Saturday, November 21st, Fort Mill, SC -- Oxon Hill, MD welterweight Akeem "Action Action" Jackson will be a four-round bout against Brandon Cisneros of North Carolina. Jackson (1-2, one KO) comes off a first-round knockout loss to Kahshad Elliott on October 29th in Las Vegas, NV. Cisneros (0-1) lost his pro debut by first-round TKO in February of 2019 in Charlotte, NC. Also scheduled for this card is Dundalk, MD lightweight "The Educated Boxer" Dorian Bostic (3-0, three KO's) who has a four-round bout against an opponent to be determined. Bostic, a native of Cheraw, SC, last fought on September 26th and scored a second-round TKO over Juwan Jones.
Saturday, November 21st, Bryan Glazer Family JCC Auditorium, Tampa, FL -- Baltimore heavyweight Cortez Dunston will make his long-awaited pro debut against Gary Kelly of Montgomery, AL. Dunston was a Regional Golden Gloves champion in 2016. Kelly (1-11, one KO) lost by four-round unanimous decision to debuting Arhan Castillo on October 17th in Lakeland, FL.
Friday, November 27th, Seminole Hard Rock Hotel And Casino, Hollywood, FL -- Columbia, MD super middleweight Ashton "The Goon" Sykes will be in a contest against undefeated Alexis Espino of Las Vegas, NV. The bout is scheduled for either four or six rounds. Sykes (5-3, one KO) will try to extend a three-bout winning streak including a four-round unanimous decision over previously undefeated Isiah Hart on March 7th in Cheswick, PA. Espino (6-0, four KO's) comes off a six-round unanimous decision over Delvecchio Savage on February 29th in Frisco, TX.
Two locally-based boxers lost contests on a card at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, PA on Saturday, November 7th.
Silver Spring, MD super lightweight Dieumerci "Elephant" Nzau lost by four-round unanimous decision to undefeated Daiyaan Butt of Philadelphia. All three judges scored the bout 40-36. Nzau, a native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is now 11-13, eight KO's. Butt's record rises to 6-0 with three KO's.
Annapolis, MD super lightweight David "The Demolisher" Veras Pena was stopped in the first round by undefeated Nafear Charles of Philadelphia. The bout was over at 1:25. Pena, who is originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico, remains winless at 0-3-1 while Charles is 5-0 with all five wins by knockout.
Two Beltway Boxers battled on Saturday, November 7th at the Blennerhassett Hotel in Parkersburg, WVA. Frederick, MD super welterweight Jonathan Ryan "The Lion King" Burrs won a four-round split decision over Vitalii Gubkin of Alexandria, VA by way of Suzun, Russia.
Two judges scored the bout for Burrs 38-37 while one judge saw the bout for Gubkin by the same score. The win breaks a two-bout losing streak for Burrs and evens his record at 3-3. Gubkin falls to 1-2, one KO.
Baltimore, MD's Gervonta "Tank" Davis stopped a really close fight with Rosemead, CA's Leo Santa Cruz with a devastating left uppercut in the sixth round to knock out Santa Cruz and win two world titles on Saturday, October 31st at the Alamodome in San Antonio, TX. The bout headlined a Showtime Pay-Per-View.
Both champions fought in close quarters the entire contest -- battling valiantly and with loads of heart when suddenly, Davis landed a brutal left uppercut that sent Santa Cruz crashing to the canvas. Referee Rafael Ramos immediately stopped the contest at 2:40 of the sixth round. The knockout will be listed among the best of 2020.
The three judges scorecards all had Davis ahead 48-47 at the time of the knockout. Davis is now both the WBA Lightweight champion and the WBA Super Lightweight titleholder. He remains undefeated at 24-0, 23 KO's and now has to be considered among the top pound-for-pound boxers in the sport. If that becomes true, Davis will be the first Beltway Boxer to reach that plateau since International Boxing Hall Of Famer Mark "Too Sharp" Johnson.
Santa Cruz, who fought with a true champion's heart, suffers his second loss and is now 37-2-1, 19 KO's.
