Taylor decisions Ouma!(12-11-06)
By JD Meredith and David Hudson at Ringside - Fightnews.com
 
For Jermain Taylor, Kassim "The Dream" Ouma lived up to his nickname, for the
middleweight king, fighting in front of his home town for the first time as a champion, could
not have asked for a dreamier title defense.

Well, short of a knockout, anyway, for while dominating the fight, Taylor was unable to
floor the game Ouma.

While chants of "JAY-TEE!" filled the Alltel Arena in Little Rock, Arkansas, Taylor
dominated the score cards in the early rounds, building a sizeable lead while Ouma could do
little but weather the storm.

Down the stretch, "The Dream" sought to turn into Taylor’s nightmare, rallying in a
desperate attempt to dethrone the champion, but could not change the course of the fight.

All three judges scored it unanimously for Taylor, with scores of 118-110, 117-111 and
115-113.

Fightnews also had Taylor winning, though closer to the 115-113 score than the 118-110
ledger.

" He came in and fought all twelve rounds," said the champion, now 25-0-1 (17 KOs). "He
was a tough guy. He was just that tough."

Ouma, now 25-3-1 (15 KOs), told the press that he would like another shot at Taylor, even
if it was in Little Rock again.

" I’m never going to give up," he said.

ROUND-BY-ROUND

ROUND ONE: Taylor seeks to impose his power and strength, winging wild right hands.
The southpaw Ouma tries to maintain his composure. Ouma withstands the assault, as
Taylor appears a bit too wild. Ouma moves forward, attempting to land some shots to
Taylor’s midsection. Taylor wins the round, largely on his aggression, loading up on too
many punches.

Fightnews score: Taylor 10-9

ROUND TWO: Taylor lands several solid shots, though may still be a bit overanxious.
Ouma attempts to press forward behind straight left hands to the body. Taylor attempts to
use his strength, bullying the smaller man. Ouma hangs tough and lands some good counter
punches. Ouma lands a good straight left to the head. Referee Frank Garza has to split the
fighters apart numerous times. Ouma has a solid round, but does appear intimidated by the
bigger man.

Fightnews score: Taylor 10-9

ROUND THREE: Ouma presses forward, but Taylor lands some good left hands. Ouma
lands a decent jab and continues to come forward. Ouma’s style appears a bit confusing to
Taylor. The champion appears more effective with his left hand than in previous bouts.
Taylor lands a left-right combination near the end of the round. The two fighters show each
other a fair amount of respect in the ring.

Fightnews score: Taylor 10-9

ROUND FOUR: Ouma continues to move forward, sometimes walking through heavy
artillery. Taylor can’t land more than one shot at a time. Taylor lands a long jab, as Ouma
hurls himself at the champion. The crowd roars anytime Taylor lands – or appears to land –
a punch. Taylor tags the challenger with a nice three-punch combination. Still, Ouma comes
back, but Taylor clearly captures the round.

Fightnews score: Taylor 10-9. The open scoring system reveals that Taylor has a
commanding 40-36 lead on all three scorecards.

ROUND FIVE: Ouma presses forward, trying to make something happen. He attempts to
smother the punches of the champion. Taylor throws some serious body shots and tries a
hard uppercut lead. Ouma lands several blows in the corner, utilizing his quickness
advantage. Taylor lands several serious blows toward the end of the round. Taylor appears
to have a cut over his left eye. Fortunately, he has Arkansas boxing legend Ray Rodgers in
his corner to tend to it.

Fightnews score: Taylor 10-9

ROUND SIX: Ouma steps up his intensity even more, perhaps emboldened by Taylor’s
cut. He lands several short combinations, including a very good right hook. Ouma later
lands a good left hand. Taylor, perhaps feeling a sense of urgency, lands several serious
shots. Still Ouma’s work-rate is impressive. Taylor lands a good left hook at the end of the
round. This is a difficult round to score. Taylor has a fight on his hands.

Fightnews score: Ouma 10-9

ROUND SEVEN: Ouma throws several right hooks, targeting Taylor’s cut. The blood
flows again from Taylor and Ouma initiates contact. Taylor circles to his left and then his
right. He lands a good right hand that momentarily stops Ouma. However, Ouma’s
pressure continues.

Fightnews score: Ouma 10-9

ROUND EIGHT: Cutman Rodgers appeared quite busy in the corner again, tending to
Taylor’s eye. Ouma throws several quick punches and lands a few. The two wrestle in the
corners. Taylor appears less active in this round but gathers himself and fires hard shots at
an onrushing Ouma. Taylor lands an impressive two-punch combination at the end of the
round. Taylor’s performance during the last 30 seconds is particularly impressive.

Fightnews score: Taylor 10-9. Open scoring reveals that one judge has it 80-72, another has
it 78-74 and a third has it 80-73.

ROUND NINE: Taylor again lands the harder punches. Ouma presses forward, but
Taylor’s punches are doing more damage. Ouma walking forward through these hard
punches from the champion is a true testament to his will. However, Taylor’s superior
strength and punching power gives him the round.

Fightnews score: Taylor 10-9

ROUND TEN: Ouma starts the round with several effective punches. He gives Taylor
problems with his quick right hooks to Taylor’s left eye area. Ouma continues advancing,
even in the face of a Taylor uppercut. Ouma shows a solid chin, taking another solid
uppercut. Taylor carries his hands too low, allowing Ouma to land some more punches. The
champion rocks Ouma again at the end of the round.

Fightnews score: Ouma 10-9

ROUND ELEVEN: Ouma is relentless, continually pressing Taylor in the face of harder
shots from a bigger man. Taylor ties up Ouma, as blood pours from his face. Ouma is
aggressive, but Taylor lands several hard shots, as the challenger advances forward. Ouma is
taking Taylor’s punches, much to the surprise of many in the crowd. Ouma may well have
taken that round.

Fightnews score: Ouma 10-9

ROUND TWELVE: Ouma needs a knockout to win and he advances forward with a fury.
Taylor tries to fend off the smaller man. The rounds are tough to score, as Ouma’s volume
may well offset Taylor’s harder punches. It is a difficult round to score. The fight ends in a
clinch. Ouma is still moving Taylor around the ring.—David Hudson

Berto stops Figueroa

Undefeated welterweight Andre Berto (16-0, 14 KOs), of Winter Haven, FL, met the tough
Miguel "The Flame" Figueroa (24-5-1, 14 KOs), of Camden, NJ, in the scheduled ten-
round co-main event.

In the first, Berto put the pressure on Figueroa, throwing punches with intent. With left
hooks to the body and double rights to the head, Berto controlled the ring and distributed
damage evenly.

The crowd erupted when Berto forced Figueroa to spent most of his time against the ropes.
Surely, the bell saved Figueroa from a knockdown as Berto staggered him on the ropes.

In round two, Figueroa tried to push Berto around the ring early but threw no punches.
Berto took control and pursued him around the ropes. Figueroa doubled up on the jab and
Berto countered with a left–right to the body. Berto also scored with uppercuts that found
their mark. At one point in the round, Figueroa put together four consecutive jabs. Berto and
Figueroa traded blows at the end of the round and a big right hand connected for Figueroa.

Jabs landed for Berto in round three. Figueroa took punishment from Berto then returned
two stiff jabs of his own. Redness and swelling appeared below the right eye of Figueroa by
the sound of the bell.

Figueroa tried to match Berto’s jabs in round four but Berto’s triple jab-right hand quelled
his attempt. At midpoint of the round, Berto shot a hard lead right down the middle. Berto’s
points from jabs added up and became his main weapon in the round.

Both fighter’s faces showed some damage and redness in the fifth stanza. With his back to
the ropes, Figueroa let his toughness be known as he weathered Berto’s flurries. Berto’s
power was evident, and he blew a left hook through Figueroa’s guard. At the end of the
round Berto flurried again, attacking Figueroa with uppercuts and power-punches.

Berto picked up where he left off in round six. Figueroa still worked but his punches
appeared too slow. Figueroa showed a great chin as Berto lit into him with vicious shots.
While Berto walked Figueroa around the ring and a huge right hand landed that twisted
Figueroa’s head around. Four more punches landed before the referee placed himself
between Berto and his prey.

Official time of the stoppage was 1:59 of round six.

" It was fun," Berto said after the fight. "I had a great time. I wanted to prove to the public
and the fighters that I am here to fight in the welterweight division." –J.D. Meredith

Page a challenge for Guinn

Also appearing in a homecoming bout, heavyweight Dominick "The Southern Disaster"
Guinn (27-4-1, 18 KOs) faced Zack Page (12-9-1, 4 KOs), who recently stunned Lou Del
Valle in Youngstown, OH.

Page proved to be a big challenge for Guinn.

The fight looked as if it would be a quick win for Guinn when he dropped Page in round
one with a lead right hand, but Reid made the count. Guinn couldn’t close the show.

Guinn owned the center of the ring for the entire fight and Page’s game plan was to circle
around him and sneak in from the outside.

Round three found Page landing from the outside with lunging punches. A real good
jab–straight right hand connected for him that sprayed water from Guinn’s head. Page
showed some bounce in his step and Guinn attempted to cut of the ring.

Page’s quickness was allowing him to land. Two right hands landed in succession for Reid.
One of those off a break. Reid then threw a left upper cut from outside that landed.

In round four, Guinn caught Page with stunning left hook, but he took it well and came back
to press Guinn against the ropes. Page landed a right hand but Guinn doubled up on the left
hook to Page’s body.

Both fighters match straight right hands in the fifth with Guinn still containing himself,
appearing content with an average performance. Guinn had a small mouse develop under his
left eye from Page’s right hands.

Guinn didn’t show much desire as he allowed the smaller Page to back him into a corner
and lean on him.

Page beat Guinn to the punch in round seven, and it appeared that he was doing a great job
of frustrating Guinn through his constant movement and circling.

In the final round, the feel in the air was that Guinn could lose this fight unless he showed
some guts. Page remained elusive and on his horse but could be hit. Page, jabbed and
connected from the outside while Guinn was not putting more than two punches together.

Final score cards in the bout were 77-74 for Guinn, 76-75 Page, and 79-72, Guinn, who
squeaked by with a split decision.–J.D. Meredith

Reid challenges Codrington

In a clash of light heavies, Jaidon Codrington (14-1, 11 KOs) battled tough and gritty
journeyman Thomas Reid (35-18-1, 13 KOs) over six rounds.

Using crafty footwork and slick combinations, Codrington controlled this fight from the
first bell on. At times he stood and traded with the game Reid, knocking him down with a
right hand early in round two.

Reid did land against the evasive Codrington when he burst through his tight defense, but
was in danger throughout the fight.

In round five, a Codrington punch landed south of the belt on Reid, and he was warned for
low blows. Reid was given an opportunity to recover, which he did quickly.

Although Reid was continually beaten to the punch by the quickness if Codrington, he
continued to press forward showing tremendous will.

In the final round, Codrington got ahead of himself by possibly savoring his victory and
Reid popped him good. Reid’s punches caused Codrington to tighten things up for the final
minutes of the bout where he slipped and moved. Although outworking Codrington in the
final round but, Reid did not got the win.

Official Scores were 59-54 for Codrington on all three cards. –J.D. Meredith

Smith outpoints Pogue

In a four-round light heavyweight bout, hometown favorite Ray Smith (6-0, 2 KOs) from
Little Rock, squared off with Norristown, PA’s, Randy Pogue (8-6-1, 2 KOs).

Smith’s jab was highly effective in this bout. The jab set up a four punch combo that rocked
Pogue and sent him staggering.

Smith looked to land a big right hand in the second, and he did just that, with a big right
hook that stopped Pogue in his tracks. Smith’s hook made way for the jab, which continued
to snap Pogue’s head back. A fantastic four-punch combo connected for Smith, then a left-
right, a right to the body, and a left-right up top. Pogue smiled after Smith worked him over.

Pogue pressed forward through Smith’s bombardment. A jab left hand landed for Pogue
and Smith hooked under the extended punch. Pogue, then hooked over Smith’s jab. A big
right hand capped the end of the round for Smith as he caught Pogue standing flat footed.

In the final round, Smith head hunted and loaded up with power punches that threw him off
balance.

Final scores were 40-36, x3 for hometown fave Ray Smith. –J.D. Meredith

Augustus outclasses ‘Stoner’ Jones

Emanuel Augustus, who ranks as one of the most underrated fighters, showcased his
prodigious boxing skills by boxing circles around Russell "Stoner" Jones, of Denver, for
an easy decision win.

The judges scored it 100-89, 100-89 and 100-90 in favor of Augustus – no surprise here.
For his efforts, Augustus receives the WBC Continental Americas super lightweight title.

" I’d like to fight the best fighters out there," Augustus said. "I’m an HBO fighter and a
very entertaining fighter. I’ve had some tough breaks along the way but now, things are
starting to come my way."

ROUND ONE

Augustus boxes his opponent from the outside, sticking jabs to the body and head. Jones
leads with a left hook but the cagey Augustus proves hard to hit. Augustus shows more
aggression than normal, firing numerous combinations to the body and head. He connects
numerous times with left hooks to the body. Jones mounts virtually no offense the entire
round. Augustus sticks to boxing and leaves his clowning for later.

ROUND TWO

Stoner appears more active to start round two, but Augustus, again, takes control with sharp
combination punching. He proves to be an exceedingly difficult target for Jones. Augustus’
defense prowess proves self-evident through the first half of the round. He controls the
action with his jab. Jones responds with a heavy right hand, but Augustus shakes it off and
shows no ill effects. He lands a three-punch combination near the end of the round.

ROUND THREE

Augustus, once again, appears sharp, landing crisp combinations. Jones shows a good chin
but no offense. Augustus scores with lefts and rights to the body. He is making a living on
various combinations and great defense. Even on the rare occasion when Jones lands a
punch, Augustus responds with more in return. Jones lands a hard right but, once again,
Augustus lands several in return. So far, Augustus is pitching a shutout.

ROUND FOUR

Augustus begins to clown with his foot movement, though he still remains focused on the
task at hand. He high-steps, shuffles and dances. When Jones lands a seemingly hard shot,
Augustus feigns genuine hurt. He then resumes controlling the action with his jab. Jones
lands more clean shots this round than he has in the previous three rounds, but Augustus
still controls the majority of the round. This round is much closer than any other round.

ROUND FIVE

Augustus continues to dominate with various combinations. Jones appears discouraged but
occasionally responds with heavy counter attempts. Jones lands a couple jabs and Augustus
smiles back at him in return. Jones cannot seem to avoid Augustus’ straight right hands or
uppercuts for that matter. So far, Augustus is putting on a boxing clinic. He captures
another round.

ROUND SIX

Augustus dances on his toes and pops Jones with shots. He deftly avoids Jones offensive
forays. It must be difficult on Jones to face such a fine defensive fighter. Augustus lands a
hard right hand after a flurry of earlier punches. Jones appears hurt in the corner but
valiantly fires his hands in response. Augustus displays the bolo punch and dominates the
round. The only mystery remaining appears to be whether Jones will go the distance.

ROUND SEVEN

Augustus engages in more target practice, honing his craft. He backs Jones against the
ropes and batters him with an array of blows. Jones fires a few hard uppercut counters but
the beating continues. Jones is game, but he is clearly overmatched. Augustus lands
numerous clean blows. Jones remains on his feet.

ROUND EIGHT

Augustus still doesn’t take a round off and continues his dominance. He lands numerous
rights and lefts to the head and body. Jones gamely fights back but to little avail. He
potshots Jones nearly at will. Augustus is still pitching a shutout.

ROUND NINE

Augustus appears to throw harder blows this round, looking to end the bout. Jones shakes
his head but is clearly taking a beating. He still throws some hard shots in return but they
rarely land. Augustus lands more left hook to the body, left hook to the head combinations.
The only surprise is that Jones is still standing.

ROUND TEN

In the final round, Jones throws more punches but finds it hard to reach the clever
Augustus. It’s clear that Augustus’ skills place him on another level or two or three from
the game Jones. To his credit, Jones tries hard but doesn’t have much to show for his
efforts. Augustus does enough to pitch a shutout in this writer’s eyes. At the end of the
round, Augustus lands several heavy blows but Jones remains upright.–David Hudson

Smallwood small gain for Hearns

Early in his legendary hall-of-fame career, Thomas "the Hitman" Hearns feasted on
marginal competition and compiled a string of knockouts. His son Ronald appears to be
following in his father’s footsteps, by taking out the opposition early. Tonight was no
exception.

Although the fight was a complete mismatch, and a borderline embarrassment, stopped after
just 2:55, Hearns upped his record to 11-0, 9 KOs, while the hapless Smallwood dropped to
4-3-2.

ROUND ONE

Hearns faces an awkward opponent in Smallwood, who crouches low and switches from
orthodox to southpaw. Hearns, like his famous father, stalks his opponent around the ring,
looking to land powerful right crosses. Smallood runs around the ring, while Hearns batters
him with a right hand. Smallwood takes a knee in the corner. He gets up at the count of two
but it looks like an early night. Hearns lands a devastating right hand to the body and then a
right hand to the head. Smallwood, then, goes through the ropes, but the referee calls it a
slip. This fight was a complete mismatch, a borderline embarrassment. The referee stops the
bout at 2:55 of the round

Smith decisions Hayes

In the second bout of the evening, Arkansas’ Terry Smith (28-2-1) squared off against
journeyman Ramon Hayes (15-21-1), of Athens, Ga. Smith captured an eight-round
unanimous decision against Hayes, who started strongly but appeared to fatigue in the
middle rounds. Still, the fight gave Smith an opportunity to put in some work and add
another victory.

Two judges scored it 79-73 and the third had it 78-74. Fightnews also scored it 78-74.

" There is no place like home," Smith said in response to a question about fighting in his
hometown at Alltel Arena. He said that he was ready for a title shot and would love to fight
either Shannon Briggs or Oleg Maskaev.

ROUND ONE

Hayes begins round one by throwing heavy left jabs and looping left hooks. Smith
advances and probes with his left. Smith scores well with a left hook to the body but still the
action proceeds at a cautious pace. Hayes responds with a left hook. Smith comes on strong
in the waning seconds.

ROUND TWO

Smith begins the second stanza more actively, trying to land to Hayes’ fleshy midsection.
Hayes lands some good punches, backing Smith into the corner. Smith counters with
straighter punches that appear to stun Hayes. The two pugilists wing heavy shots at each
other. Smith backs Hayes up into the ropes, while Hayes begins showing signs of fatigue.
Smith blasts right hand leads at Hayes who handles them fairly well. Still the fight clearly
turns in this round, as Smith imposes his will.

ROUND THREE

Smith continues in the aggressor role, landing a hard left hook. Hayes has slowed down
even more though he still shows signs of life. Smith lands a left jab to the body followed by
a reaching right hand on top. Smith backs Hayes to the ropes and fired a series of body
shots. Hayes takes them fairly well but continues to assume more of a defensive, survivor
mode.

ROUND FOUR

Smith continues to attack his bigger foe’s body. Hayes punches in return seem to lack the
snap necessary to garner respect. Smith lands another two-punch combination. Hayes lands
an occasional jab but cannot fend off the advancing Smith. Smith lands a right uppercut
followed by a hook that hurts Hayes. The two men pause in the ring with neither throwing
punches for nearly 10 seconds. Hayes attempts to mount an attack, but Smith thwarts it
easily.

ROUND FIVE

Smith attacks again but Hayes manages to avoid damage by holding. Smith suddenly
attacks and Hayes counterpunches. Hayes appears to be trying to lure Smith and fight in
spurts. For his part, Smith continues to pile up the points. Smith attacks again toward the
end of the round, landing a few significant blows.

ROUND SIX

Hayes appears to have a second wind, throwing his jab with more authority. Smith deftly
avoids the punches, however, and fires back with power punches. Smith continues to plod
forward throwing with meaner intentions. The round is a bore with neither fighter doing
much.

ROUND SEVEN

Smith attacks with a flurry at the beginning of the round. Hayes attempts to counter again
with a left hook. Referee Ray Moreno has to work more as these rounds progress. Both
fighters appear reticent to let their hands go. Still, Smith appears the more active and
aggressive fighter. Smith backs Hayes to the ropes and fires away to the body. Hayes tries
to counter and does just enough to thwart the aggressor.

ROUND EIGHT

At the start of the final round, Smith again forces the action though Hayes responds in kind.
Hayes even manages to land a two-punch combination though Smith does not appear fazed.
Undettered, he continues to mount an attack. Smith punches too widely, enabling Hayes to
land a few straighter counter shots. Smith still advances forward but the bout appears
headed to the judges. Smith lands a hard shot near the round. –David Hudson.

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