Beltway Boxing 2018 -- Prospect Of The Year!

Now we come to the Prospect Of The Year for 2018.  After the 2017 selection being an easy one to make, this category returned to being one of the toughest to choose.  For the second time in three years, we could not pick just one because three boxers in particular had outstanding years and made great strides to expand their careers.

The 2018 Beltway Boxing Prospects Of The Year Are:

“The Dark Menace” Tiara Brown, super featherweight, 7-0, five KO’s, Bladensburg, MD

Greg “The Sharpshooter” Outlaw, super lightweight, 7-0, two KO’s, Bowie, MD

 Antuanne "The Last" Russell, super lightweight, 7-0, 7 KO’s, Capitol Heights, MD

After announcing her signing with DiBella Entertainment in May of 2018, Brown would go on to have an outstanding year, scoring three stoppages against veteran opponents.  On June 30th, Brown scored a fifth-round TKO over Brittany Cruz at the Sphinx Club in DC.  Brown would make her DiBella debut on September 22nd and stop Jasmine Clarkson in the fourth round at Bowie State University.  Brown would return to Bowie State’s A.C. Jordan Arena on December 8th and score another fourth-round stoppage against Dahiana Santana.  In the fast-moving world of women’s pro boxing, look for Brown to challenge for a regional or possibly, a world title in 2019.

Outlaw had a solid 2018 as well beginning with a road trip to Atlantic City, NJ on June 2 where he won by second-round TKO over Dan Murray.  Then Outlaw would make his foray into being a headlining boxer by appearing in the main event of the two cards at his alma mater, Bowie State University.  On September 22nd, Outlaw would win a six-round unanimous decision over Rashad Bogar followed by an impressive performance in winning by six-round shutout over Mack Allison IV on December 8th.  Outlaw looks like he is ready to ascend to contender status in the near future.

The competition got a little better for the 2016 United States Olympian and 2017 co-Beltway Boxing Rookie Of The Year as he faced four opponents with winning records.  However, the results were exactly the same as he knocked out all three foes.  On March 3rd, Russell would knock out fellow undefeated boxer Keasen Freeman in the second round in Brooklyn, NY.  Russell would return to the Barclays Center and knock out Andrew Rodgers in the third round on April 21st.  Russell would move into the scheduled eight-rounders on May 19th but would only need one round to knock out Wilmer Rodriguez at MGM National Harbor Casino in Oxon Hill, MD.  Russell closed out his year with another first-round stoppage on August 4th against Jose Arturo Esquivel in Uniondale, NY.  Russell, along with his brothers Gary and Antonio, should have interesting 2019 seasons.

Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order):

Antonio "Another" Russell, super bantamweight, 12-0, 10 KO’s, Capitol Heights, MD

Russell competed twice in 2018 and scored two knockouts against veteran opponents.  On May 19th, Russell scored a fifth-round TKO over Jonathan Lecona Ramos at MGM National Harbor.  Russell scored a first-round KO over Nick Otieng on August 24th in Minneapolis, MN in his first scheduled eight-round bout.

Shynggyskhan Tazhibay, welterweight, 8-0, two KO’s, Washington, DC

The native of Kazakhstan continued his winning ways against veteran opponents as he won three bouts in 2018.  On April 21st, Tazhibay won a four-round unanimous decision over Isaac Freeman in Brooklyn, NY.  Then on September 14th, Tazhibay defeated Justin Johnson by four-round unanimous decision in Philadelphia, PA.  Tazhibay would move up to the six-round level and would defeat veteran Juan Rodriguez on October 27th by unanimous decision in Fort Washington, MD.

Previous Beltway Boxing Prospects of the Year:

2006: Tyrell Samuel

2007: Tim Coleman

2008: Bayan Jargal

2009: Mark Tucker

2010: Gary Russell, Jr. and Seth Mitchell

2011:  Maurice Byarm and Venroy July

2012: Thomas Williams, Jr.

2013: Dusty Hernandez Harrison

2014: Mike Reed

2015: Jarrett Hurd

2016: Mykal Fox, Travis Reeves and Lamont Roach, Jr.

2017: Malik Hawkins

Next:  The Beltway Boxing Knockout Of The Year!