Giuriceo rules the diamond with UD victory

By Greg Gulas

sports@vindy.com

STRUTHERS

On a night when the lights seemed to present the biggest challenge for Lights Out Productions, Campbell’s Jake “The Bull” Giuriceo and Cleveland’s Miguel Gonzales made sure they went dim for their respective opponents at Saturday’s Destruction on the Diamond at Bob Cene Park.

In the main event Giuriceo (13-0-1) earned an eight-round unanimous decision victory over Ramesis Gil (6-3-4) of Santo Domingo, D.R., in a light welterweight bout.

Further details were not available. Due to a one-hour delay, the fight ended just before this edition went to press.

In the co-feature, Gonzales (19-2, 13 KOs) scored a unanimous decision over Tyrone “Fist of Fury” Harris (24-8, 16 KOs) of Lansing, Mich., despite being knocked down in the seventh round.

“I’d have to look at the tape, but I felt like it was more of a slip,” Gonzales said. “He [Harris] was an excellent fighter and really tough to box.

“He tried to box me but when he realized that he couldn’t keep the distance, he backed off and that gave me an opening.”

In the opening fight, Derrick Evans (2-0, 2 KOs) of Utica, N.Y., needed just a minute and 37 seconds to dispose of Ashtabula’s Aaron DuFour (2-2), knocking him down three times in the opening round.

“I trained hard for this fight; I didn’t come here to lose,” Evans said. “I caught him with a right hook to the chin the first time I knocked him down and the second time with a left hook to the jaw. The third time I was able to catch him with a flurry of punches.”

In the first of three consecutive heavyweight pairings, Cleveland’s Jason “Big Daddy” Massie (7-0, 4 KOs) won by majority decision over Mujaheed Moore (4-5) of Shaker Heights to remain undefeated.

“I’m disappointed in my performance tonight because I know that I am a better fighter than what I showed,” Massie said.

In the second heavyweight clash, Austintown’s Chris Koval (25-7, 18 KOs) made a successful return to the ring when he also scored a majority decision over James Porter (5-16, KO) of Terre Haute, Ind.

“It wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win and I’ll take it,” Koval said. “I had only three days of sparring and I guess I expected a little more out of myself tonight.

“His record wasn’t indicative of how tough a fighter he actually was. His body was open so I took advantage of that, but otherwise we both worked really hard in the ring. I wanted to test myself and that is exactly what happened tonight.”

After a delay of nearly an hour and 10 minutes due to lighting difficulties under the tent, Nicolai “The Mountain Man” Firtha (20-8, 8 KOs) took advantage of the break to score a unanimous decision over Ross “The Boss Thompson (27-16-3, 17 KOs) in the final heavyweight bout of the evening.