Monsters You Made! Oyeleye, Arnold & Marrero – All Win by Knockout!
By: George H. Hanson Jr., Esq.
Date: June 22, 2024
Venue: 2300 Arena – Philadelphia, PA
Promoter: Alex Barbosa’s R&B Promotions – “Philly Fight Night 5.”
Ring Announcers: “Manager” Marty Brown & Alex Barbosa
Referees: Shawn Clark & Eric Dali
Coverage: www.combatsportsnow.com
Photos: Darryl Cobb Jr. & Kenny Ludwig
Gloves: “Put Up Your Dukes” brand – www.kdukesboxing.com
Please grab your favorite drink/refreshment as a I recount another memorably night of the sweet science by R&B Promotions at our favorite venue – 2300 Arena. If you were absent – you have my condolences and deep regrets because the action and knockouts were so titillating that had this show been held in a graveyard – the newly departed would have been knocking from within the caskets seeking assistance to join the festivities, rising from their graves. Kudos to the boxers, trainers, managers and matchmakers for etching another memory in the rich history of Philadelphia boxing. Take a seat as we enter the venue.
With Nigerian cultural giant – Burna Boy, Grammy Award Winner & African Artiste of the Year, blaring on “Monsters We Made” over the house speakers – his countryman – rapidly rising junior-middleweight Oluwafemi “The Nigerian Nightmare” Oyeleye (15 wins – 0 losses – 0 draws – 9 kos) exited his dressing room making it to the runway leading to the ring. With the audience’s collective eye glued to him – Oyeleye like the fearless Maasai warriors – performed the Adumu – the energetic and athletic traditional dance – by jumping several times in the air. I am confident that he can dunk a basketball effortlessly. Flanked by Hall of Fame trainer – Coach Shar’ron Baker, manager Lando Rosa with assistant Calib “Big Foot” Whitmore behind – he strolled to the ring basking in the cheers and adulation of the hometown fans. His opponent Leonardo Di Stefano Ruiz (13 wins – 3 losses – 0 draws – 12 kos) Ludwigsburg, Germany fighting out of Pomona, California waited patiently in his corner.
Referee Shawn Clark gave the instructions, the combatants retreated to their corners and the gong sounded for the commencement of the opening round of the scheduled eight-rounder. Oyeleye worked behind his southpaw jab – connecting to Ruiz’s head and midsection as he came forward. Ruiz returned fire with his right hand in position to counter. With Coach Shar’ron shouting, instructing her charge to continue jabbing, “The Nigerian Nightmare” judiciously implemented their gameplan – garnering him the round on my scorecard.
The chess match resumed in the second round as Oyeleye found a home for his stiff right jab, occasionally turning it into a hook followed by a straight left, adding a few uppercuts to the recipe for success. Ruiz made it an interesting and intriguing battle, unleashing a few straight rights lased with Nyquil that missed their target by a cat’s whisker because of the impregnable defense of the Nigerian whom I would reasonably conclude captured the second stanza. The third round was being contested like the previous two when midway Oyeleye while recoiling his jab stopped it halfway – turned it into a hook – shifted his weight and connecting with power and precision on the left side of Ruiz’s head sending him crashing to the canvas as though someone had swiftly pulled a rug from beneath his feet. Somewhat shaken, Ruiz made it to a standing position before referee Clark tolled four, checked his vitals and signaled for the fight to continue. Oyeleye attacked with bad intentions hoping to end the festivities. Kudos to Ruiz for evading and dodging Oyeleye’s barrage – making it to the bell to end the round.
I had the best vantage point in the arena – I was seated in the first row – directly behind Oyeleye’s corner – privy to the instructions imparted by Coach Baker. Thus, there was no surprise when he came out for the fourth round – working behind his jab – strategically searching for an opening to land his deadly right hook. Oblivious to the land mine in his path – Ruiz attempted to walk through Oyeleye’s jab and was immediately met with a right hook that crashed off the side of his head – sending him to the canvas – genuflecting on both knees as though he had just entered the Vatican for Mass on Sunday morning – crawling forward as though he was searching for dislodged contact lenses – his head finally crashing on the bottom ropes, approximately six feet from where he first left his feet. No surprise that referee Clark immediately called a halt to this classical and tactical tussle – declaring Oyeleye the winner by knockout at 42 seconds of the fourth round. Fortunately, Ruiz recovered and was able to leave the ring without medical assistance. There is a new sheriff in the junior-middleweight division, and he is Nigerian!
In the six-round co-main event, Samuel Arnold, the boxer, not the French actor famous for the Netflix series Emily In Paris, rode into town from Dallas, Texas with two “Peacemakers” strapped to his waist ready for demolition and destruction. Bearing the moniker “S3” because his legal name is Samuel Arnold III – the 6 feet 3 inches, twenty-one years-old super-middleweight is the doppelganger for my late cousin Delroy “Dalton” Gregory – who was my faithful sidekick whenever I landed in Jamaica on vacation. I thought that my eyes were playing tricks on me when Arnold made his ring walk. I heard the late, great Richard Pryor talking to me from beyond saying, “Goddamn, that motherfucker looks just like your cousin!” I had to calmly excuse my favorite comedian and place him back into my subconscious as Arnold (9 wins – 0 losses – 0 draws – 6 kos) made his way into the ring flanked by his handlers to face the awaiting Jhosue Chumpik (6 wins – 2 losses – 0 draws – 2 kos) Ecuador.
Referee Eric Dali brought the combatants and their handlers to the center of the ring, gave the instructions, had them touch gloves, wishing them well as they retreated to their corners for the opening bell. Arnold towering over his opponent, worked behind his long jab, locks bouncing under the ring lights. Chumpik bobbed his head evading some of the shots calmly as though he was looking for an opportunity to land something of consequence. This went on for over a minute when Arnold morphed into my favorite fighter, five-division World Champion Tommy “The Hitman” Hearns and landed a straight right with enough power to level a small building – that connected on Chumpik’s chin sending him straight to the canvas – no need for referee Dali to count but to immediately call a halt and get the ringside doctor and medical team to assist the fallen fighter. Arnold was declared the winner by knockout at 1:18 of the opening round. Fortunately, Chumpik was revived and left the ring with his handlers.
Many of us have accepted the refutable “fact” that Philadelphians are genetically programmed to despise anything coming out of Dallas, Texas as evidenced by the rivalry between our beloved Eagles – 2018 Super Bowl Champions – and the Dallas Cowboys who last won a championship during President Clinton’s administration way back in 1993. However, Philadelphia loves Samuel Arnold as he was given a resounding round of applause during his post-fight interview in the ring. The magnificently gifted and talented young fighter thanked the fans and mentioned his appreciation for fighting in Philadelphia. We only hope that his management team gets him on our hometown hero – Jaron “Boots” Ennis’ first defense of his IBF Welterweight Title on July 13th at the Wells Fargo Center.
I am a firm believer in the explicable that God blesses certain boxers with the gift of knockout power. Philadelphia lightweight Juan “The One” Marrero (4 wins – 0 losses – 0 draws –4 kos) like former two-division World Champions Julian “The Hawk” Jackson and the late, great Edwin Valero – the only undefeated World Champion with 100% knockout ratio – has the uncanny ability to leave his opponents on the canvas unconscious or writhing in pain with one shot from either hand. Facing the 5 ft 9inches southpaw, is tantamount to walking across a minefield in the Vietnam War hoping to make it to the other side safely – unscathed and intact.
Tonight’s opponent Michael “The Double Rican” Ruiz (1 win – 2 losses – 0 draws – 0 kos) of Tom River, New Jersey held his own in the opening round of the scheduled four-rounder. He was able to fight on even terms with Marrero, never allowing him to land anything crippling – using his jab and movement to offset the Philadelphian. Based on the information that I overheard from his corner – it was safe to relay to you my reader that Brother Marrero was not judiciously following the instructions of his Hall of Fame trainer – Coach Shar’ron Baker.
Nevertheless, he regained focus and adhered to the game plan in the second stanza. Working behind his southpaw jab, Marrero stalked Ruiz and countered whenever his adversary punched. It is like backup singing – doing supporting vocal parts while the lead singer is performing. Somehow, this gave Ruiz the comfort that he was Smokey Robinson and Marrero was “The Miracles.” I hate the boxing cliché – “setting traps” a term often used but never explained by those whose knowledge of boxing fits comfortably on the back of a postage stamp. However, this was the textbook case of setting traps – given your opponent a certain level of comfort oblivious to imminent danger. While Ruiz was in the middle of throwing a combination, Marrero beat him to the punch and landed a well-placed left uppercut/half hook to the liver on his right side. He immediately crumbled to the canvas as the signals from the liver rushed to his brain letting him know that he was in dire straits unable to gain control of his legs and get upright before Referee Dali reached the count of ten. The ten-count was a mere formality as Ruiz was unable to get to his feet and Marrero was declared the winner by knockout 2:27 of the second round – giving further credence to my assertion that knockout power is from our creator – God! Can I have an “Amen?”
The opening fight of the night was an extremely entertaining four-round heavyweight bout between Dante “Mr. Snuggly Time” Selby (3 wins – 4 losses – 2 draws – 1ko) Philadelphia and Daniel Bean (2 wins – 2 losses – 0 draws – 2 kos) of Old Bridge, New Jersey. The forty-three-year-old Selby found the “Fountain of Youth” and boxed brilliantly behind his jab with trainer Greg Hackett yelling “Stay off the ropes!” throughout the fight. Despite the thirty-one-year-old Bean, decked out in black trunks, bobbing and weaving – evoking fond memories of the great Michael Gerard Tyson – landing an overhand right – Mr. Snuggly Time kept his composure and garnered the opening round on my scorecard. The second round was fought at the same tempo and pace with Selby using his jab and pulling backwards like the great Muhammad Ali to avoid getting hit by Bean’s murderous left hook. Again – I gave the edge to Selby because he demonstrated good ring generalship and landed the more effective blows.
The third round was unquestionably won by Selby who hurt Bean with a few left hooks to the body and had him holding to survive. Both Stevie Wonder and the late Ray Charles would have awarded the third round to the Philadelphian. However, the tide turned in the final round as Bean connected with a few uppercuts – hurting his nemesis – pressing the action to the bell. Ring Announcer – Manager Marty Brown’s announcement of 40-36, 39-37 and 38-38 for Selby was met with cheers from the audience. However, he realized that he read the scores correctly but for the wrong boxer. He rectified his faux pas – announcing Bean as the victor – which was met with a cacophony of boos. I doubt if anyone argued against 38-38. However, the two judges who scored it 40-36 and 39-37 are either in need of guide dogs or simply need a refresher on the fundamentals of scoring a boxing match. Nevertheless, I hope there is a rematch scheduled for six rounds.
The second bout of the night featured undefeated junior-middleweights – nineteen-year-old Richard Johnson (1 win – 0 losses – 0 draws – 1 ko) of Philadelphia against twenty-three-year-old Edwin Charip (1 wins – 0 losses – 0 draws – 0 kos) of Ecuador. The 5 ft 10 inches Johnson used his reach and dexterity to outbox his opponent who was four inches shorter. Switching intermittently from orthodox to southpaw, it appeared that Johnson was simply having a good time enjoying the art of hitting without being hit. There were moments in the bout that I am convinced that he could have closed the show – win by knockout – but he took his foot off the gas and resorted to demonstrating his defensive wizardry and fancy footwork. To his credit, Charip threw everything with bad intentions hoping to literally decapitate his tormentor. However, Johnson was too fleet-footed and fundamentally sound doing his best impersonation of IBF Welterweight Champion – Jaron “Boots” Ennis!
With legendary trainer Fred Jenkins Sr., and Fred Jr. in his corner, Johnson coasted to a unanimous decision, displaying his wares – giving us a glimpse of his immense potential. Two judges had it 40-36 while the third scored it 39-37 having me wondering which round could have been given to the Ecuadorian. Johnson has an extremely bright future.
I don’t know what occurred at Friday’s weigh-ins between lightweights Noah “Cannon” Norman (1 win – 0 losses – 0 draws – 1 ko) Coatesville, Pennsylvania and Michael Taylor (1 win – 7 losses – 0 draws – 0 kos) of Cortland, New York. Because the sound of the gong had barely dissipated when Norman raced across the ring like he was competing in the 100-yard dash and commenced to rain down on his opponent with every punch in his arsenal in the scheduled four-rounder. Somehow, the taller Taylor survived the initial onslaught and began using his jab – keeping Norman at a distance. There were several exchanges. However, the 5 ft. 11 inches Taylor held his own and at one point beckoned for the shorter Norman to come forward – a sign of machismo. The man from Coatesville is five inches shorter but whatever he lacks in height is expiated by his ferocity and willingness to engage toe-to-toe. Apparently feeling disrespected by Taylor’s action, the heavily tattooed Norman pinned him in a corner and unleashed with every conceivable punch – connecting to the head and body – forcing Referee Clark to stop the fight – declaring Norman the winner by technical knockout at 2:53 of the opening round.
It was another spectacular night of boxing by R&B Promotions. “I am super happy! It is more of our brand to constantly test our fighters. Two fights fell out. But, we had six quality fights,” stated Alex Barbosa, Promoter.
It was great seeing Dr. Victory Anyiam – “The Muhammad Ali of Chiropractors” ringside to watch two of his clients – Oyeleye and Marrero – perform stupendously. www.victorychiropracticandperformance.com
Congratulations to Coach Shar’ron Baker and Lando Rosa.. Monsters you made!
Continue to support the sweet science. And remember, always carry your mouthpiece!
ghanson18@icloud.com
