Madison Square Garden in the heart of New York City hosted a thrilling heavyweight match-up put together by Main Events in association with Hennessy Sports. The undefeated Tyson Fury (20-0, 14 KO’s) faced off against the two time cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham (25-5, 12 KO’s). The action began even before the opening bell during the opening instructions. When the fighters were instructed to touch gloves, Fury boldly slammed hard onto Cunningham’s; drawing a reaction from the crowd.
The first stanza saw some exciting back and forth action. Fury, with a huge size advantage over Cunningham, worked behind straight jabs and rights, while Cunningham utilized his superior footwork. Fury, being the talker that he is, taunted Cunningham with his hands down for much of the round. The second round saw some amazing fireworks, as an overhand right floored Fury hard. He beat the count, and Fury finally kept his hands up while Cunningham chased after him, landing some good shots in the process. The round ended with Cunningham’s fans in attendance on their feet.
After a solid third round for Cunningham, he was able to lure Fury into another big right hand halfway through the fourth. Fury was able to work his way back into the round, but he paired together clinching with forcing his head into Cunningham’s, receiving warnings from referee Eddie Cotton. Then in the fifth round, after more clinching and headwork, the referee decided to penalize Fury by deducting a point. Fury responded by landing a hard right hand that hurt Cunningham. With Fury going in for the kill, Cunningham utilized good footwork and clinching to make it through the round. The sixth round saw the pace slow down a bit, and it could be said that Fury’s size and weight advantage began to take it’s toll. The seventh round saw Cunningham hope to fight his way out of the slight lull, and that worked against him. Towards the end of the round, an uppercut from Fury stunned Cunningham against the ropes. Cunningham attempted a clinch, but Fury wrestled his way out and landed a crushing right hand that sent Cunningham down. He attempted to make it to his feet, but it was too much, and the referee made his way to the count of ten.
Tyson Fury won by way of knockout at 2:55 of the seventh round. This victory pits Fury in a showdown with Kubrat Pulev in an eliminator to face Wladimir Klitschko for the IBF heavyweight title.
The re-emerging Curtis Stevens (23-3, 17 KO’s) and Derrick Findley (20-9, 13 KO’s) opened up the televised portion of the afternoon. Both fighters opened up the bout throwing hard punches, but it was Stevens who drew first blood, so to speak, when a left hook upstairs followed by a left hook to the body staggered Findley into the ropes. Findley was able to recover from the damage and work Stevens into the ropes for a time towards the end of the round. Findley continued the pressure to start the second round, working Stevens into the ropes again. Stevens stuck behind a shell defensive stance for most of the round.
The fourth round saw Stevens finally begin to open up, throwing multiple combinations that all finished with crisp left hooks. Findley had little answer, but continued to stay in Stevens’chest trying to find an opening. That did little to Stevens as he continued with hard right hands and flush left hooks. The fifth round saw some exciting back and forth action, but it was Stevens whose punches were more crisp and under control.
The seventh round saw some interesting action. Stevens landed some hard blows, but it was a left hand from Findley that seemed to knocks Stevens off balance and down. The referee ruled it a knockdown, but Stevens did not seem phased by the blow. Instead, he followed up the knockdown with some hard punches of his own. The eighth and final round saw Stevens give some time away to Findley, keeping a distance as if he had the fight won. Towards the end, Stevens gave the fans some showcase combinations. In the end, scores of 78-74, 78-74, and 79-73 were announced in favor of Stevens, giving him a unanimous decision victory.
Polish heavyweight Adam Kownacki (4-0, 4 KO’s) entered the arena with much fanfare when he took to the ring against Calbert Lewis (0-2). Neither fighter would win a bodybuilding contest, as they both carried excess weight around the mid-section, but they made up for it with a strong will to fight. Kownacki showcased some skillful offensive output, and was able to take chances due to the fact that Lewis’punches were telegraphed and looping. At the end of the first round, a strong right hand wobbled Lewis badly, but the bell rang, giving Lewis time to survive. The second round saw Kownacki pummel Lewis from pillar to post. Lewis had nothing in return. Finally, after dozens of unanswered punches, the referee called the fight off at the 1:43 point of the second round giving Kownacki the TKO victory.
In a heavyweight bout, brother of Tyson Fury, Hughie Lewis Fury (1-0, 1 KO) squared off against Alex Rozman (1-0, 1 KO). Rozman, with his exceptional build, looked the part before the bell, but as soon as the bout started, he was no match for Fury. A right hand early in the round sent him down on his back. Fury continued the pressure, landing uppercuts and right hands behind the jab, and Rozman went down twice more, but the referee called them slips. Another combination from Fury sent Rozman down face-first. After beating the count, it was a final right hand that sent Rozman down, and the referee waved the fight off. Fury won with a TKO at 2:26 of the first round.
Exciting up and comer, Karl Dargan (12-0, 6 KO’s) took on Edward Valdez (12-9-2, 6 KO’s) in a lightweight bout. Valdez came out swinging, reaching on overhand rights, while Dargan remained poised. Valdez is known as a very tough fighter, and did not seem to be very bothered by Dargan’s sharp blows.
After the second round, Valdez did not sit on his stool and began complaining about his hand. Eventually, the corner was forced to call the match, giving Dargan a TKO victory at 3:00 of the 2nd round.
The opening bout of the evening saw Sevdall Sherifi (9-1-2, 8 KO’s) of Albania take on Josh Harris (8-6-1, 6 KO’s) in a cruiserweight affair scheduled for six rounds. Sherifi comes with a bit of fanfare as his manager is fellow Albanian and Dancing With the Stars champion Tony Devolani.
The bout began with Sherifi throwing a wide array of punches and landing regularly. His selection was tremendous, and he moved to stay away from Harris’power. Despite his record, Harris is a highly regarded puncher as a cruiserweight.
The first three rounds saw Sherifi make great use of his movement, but he was lacking in his jab. On occasion, Harris was able to land hard left hooks from the outside. Sherifi managed to stay just out of range, but Harris was timing his counters. The only problem with Harris is that outside of his single shots, he rarely threw any other punches.
The fourth round saw some exciting action. Harris was finally able to land one of his hooks flush, and Sherifi legs buckled badly. Harris had time on his side and began chasing down Sherifi. Harris landed multiple huge blows to Sherifi’s chin, and the referee was watching closely to stop the fight. Finally, a big hook sent Sherifi down into the ropes, but he was able to beat the count and was saved by the bell. In the corner between rounds, the referee took a close look at Sherifi, and continued to keep an eye out when the bell for the fifth round sounded. A right hand landed hard for Harris, and the referee immediately stopped it. Sherifi protested, but ultimately it was a good call. Harris was victorious with a TKO victory at :19 of the 5th round.
