In a Showtime Sho-Box late Friday offering, it was lightweights Rolando Reyes
and Courtney Burton dueling for the NABO bauble - when the smoke cleared it
would be Reyes claiming the trinket via TKO eight.
Started quietly enough with Burton grabbing the opening stanza of a relative
chess match - Burton in cautious pursuit and Reyes taking notes - then after
four rounds this unofficial had it all square at two apiece.
Now its stanza five and Reyes confidence building - and with it, the more
aggressive Burton is suddenly aging, and it is Reyes taking chances and scoring
behind the jab.
A Reyes counter left hook drops Burton late in candle six - he then continues
the dominant of the two in round seven - and then number eight with Rolando
tossing caution to the wind.
It’s Reyes in charge over the early going and then late in the round a
two-fisted blitz drops a bleeding Burton to the canvas - no sooner falls face
down that a frenzied referee Jack Reiss in such a hurry to call a halt, trips
and falls on top of the stricken fighter while shouting to him not to move.
Time of ending is 2:55 round eight.
Reyes elevates to 25-3-2, 16 KO - Burton drops to 21-4, 11 by KO.
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Eight round Jr. Middleweight semi-final saw mini-sitcom "The Contenders"
also-ran, Ahmed Kaddour going to 19-2, 9 KO’s after a decision rout over young
20-year old southpaw Maxwell Taylor who drops to 21-2, 5 KO.
The major difference in this one was the quicker Kaddour who had superior hand
and feet speed - and while short on clout the deliveries were in bunches to both
the body and head.
Taylor pretty much handed this one over in burdening himself with too much
thinking instead of meeting the Kaddour flurries with barrages of his own - thus
it went into the books to the tune of 80-72, 79-73, 78-74.
This unofficial had it Kaddour 79-73 in points and 7-1 under the rounds system.
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Post Scripts: Rolando Reyes ~ Good boxing skills … patient and disciplined with
good working jab and nice movement. Feel the 15 stoppages in 24 wins is product
of careful opponent selection. Closed show big, but a slow plodding Burton not
similar to the version that once took out Angel Manfredy. Reyes should remain at
the Sho-Box scene while defending the small club trinket.
Courtney Burton ~ At a very old age 27 would be wise to
ride off into the sunset. Could never put anything together as he once did.
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Card came to us from Santa, Ynez, California … suspicions are it’s something in
the air out there in the land Horace Greeley once shouted "Go west young man" -
and it seems here, the entire population consists of closet Hollywood wannabes.
This smiling jerk excuse of a referee Jack Reiss so desperate for attention -
and aware he’s "on," goes Hollywood to the extent he trips and falls onto the
fallen Burton - not sure what comes next without a written script, he’s shouting
for a medic backup to maybe help with the CPR.
Sorry, Horace … think I’ll remain down here in the killer lightning capital of
the USA.
