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George just "ordinary" in decision victory over Reid. Talented NJ fighter
dominates, yet fails to impress.
By Mike Indri
Retired Boxers Foundation
(DEC 8) The letdown was obvious. Fighting short notice replacement Thomas
Reid would not present the same challenge, nor bring the same acclaim, as
facing and beating former title contender Eric Harding; Shaun George's
originally scheduled opponent for last night's ten round main event at the
Robert Treat Hotel, in nearby Newark, NJ.
Earlier this week Harding bailed out of what would have been his first fight
in over 18 months (since his 12 round UD loss to current WBC light
heavyweight champion Chad Dawson 06/02/2006). Harding claimed to have
injured his thumb in training. Many, including George, felt the nearly
thirty-five year-old fighter simply was not battle ready.
Nevertheless a fighter as talented and skilled as George can not allow
himself not to perform at his best, especially while on a quest to prove to
the boxing public that he is "the best light heavyweight in the world!"
From round one's opening bell George quickly established himself the
quicker, stronger and much more proficient boxer, peppering the veteran
Jackson, TN native with his stinging jab. The only problem was that George
never was able, or willing, to commit to a solid three minutes of
aggression.
Fighting in spurts, George flashed moments of brilliance.
Unable to stay focused though, George was getting tagged with Reid's
telegraphic, looping punches. Now a loser in seven of his last nine fights,
the journeyman Reid (35-20-1, 4 KO's) always comes ready to fight and
realized his only hope was to catch his distracted foe. Not a big puncher,
Reid has only been stopped four times during his fifty-six fight
professional career and takes pride in his sturdy chin.
George's body shots were taking their toll on his forty year old opponent,
and if George had been a good son-in-law and listened to trainer Tommy
Brooks' golden advice of continuing his below-the-chin assault midway
through the bout, George would not have had to wait for the judge's decision
and the overly large crowd would have left much happier…and much earlier!
Unleashing lethal combinations in round eight George had the beaten Reid
tiring and now hurt. As Reid staggered into the ropes George was content to
hold back. Reid, whose victory would be in hearing the final bell on his
feet, held on and weathered the storm. Round nine brought more of the same
as Reid shook his head and smiled as the bell sounded. Tenth and final
round George relegated his offense to a safe jab and some too late
bodywork.
While all three judges saw it a 100-90 shutout for George, Reid got his
"moral victory" and did not hurt his reputation as a solid veteran who
always is competitive and willing to fight.
George, who improved to 16-2-2 (7 KO's), got the win but really lost another
opportunity to show how truly good he really is. At the level, which the
likable Wayne, NJ resident aspires to reach, simply winning the fight is not
all that is required. A true champion looks to prove his greatness and
thrives to shine with each fight.
Shaun George has all the tools, the talent and his trainer Tommy Brooks is
one of the best in the business. There is no reason for him not to succeed.
The fight of the night was the six round jr. middleweight battle between
Alex Perez, a local prospect fighting out of Newark, NJ and Cory Peterson,
from Flint, Michigan. While Perez was winning the early rounds by out
boxing his tough, game opponent, Peterson showed why he is called the "Mad
Bomber" and began nailing Perez midway through the bout. With both eyes
closing and a cut above his nose the gritty Peterson rallied late and won
over the crowd - even though the three judges all came back with 58-56
scores for Perez, who narrowly escaped with his still unbeaten record, now
at 9-0. Peterson slipped to 7-2. A great fight, where neither young boxer
should have been tagged with the loss.
Also on the Donna Duva-Brooks promoted fightcard….
Irvington's John Watson made his pro debut a successful one with a unanimous
four round decision win over Fitzgerald Johnson, from Philadelphia. When
Watson abandoned his tentative ways, he controlled the action and hurt
Johnson more than once. With Tommy Brooks in his corner, to go along with
his solid defense and quick, heavy hands, Watson could become a solid super
middleweight. All three judges scored the one-sided bout 40-36. Johnson,
who gave his best Philly effort, slipped to 1-2
New York's Jorge Diaz remained undefeated with a first round knockout
against Puerto Rican Antonio Vera. The only shots Vera landed were the
three or four low blows, which apparently had no affect on Diaz. The
stronger Diaz did hurt the still winless Vera (0-3) though, as a body shot
forced Vera to take a knee and watch referee Earl Morton count him out at
the 1:35 mark. The talented Diaz improved to 2-0.
In the night's opening bout, Big Scott Fairlamb wasted no time in thrilling
his huge crowd of fans as he pounded an overwhelmed Dino Weingarten, now
1-2, and sent the short but stout fighter back to Knoxville, Tennessee after
only 55 seconds of their scheduled four round heavyweight bout.
Fairlamb, fighting out of Butler, NJ stunned his game foe with a thudding
left hand, which drove Weingarten to the canvas. To his credit the hurt
fighter beat the count but referee Earl Morton wisely stopped the contest.
"Wildman" Fairlamb, who returned to the ring after more than a four and a
half year layoff (04/03/2003, 4 round decision win over Orion Sistrunk),
improved to 5-0 with his impressive technical knockout victory.
It was nice to see the large crowd packed into the Robert Treat Hotel, in
support of the Donna Duva-Brooks promoted club show. The fans also were
treated to a night of superlative ring announcing by none other than Henry
Hascup, the President of the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame.
Former middleweight challenger William "Bo" James, who defeated John "The
Beast" Mugabi and went eleven rounds with Bernard Hopkins, and retired NJ
Devil hockey star Ken Daneko were honored during the intermission.
The only sad note to an otherwise nice night of boxing was seeing Lou Duva
taken by ambulance from the arena. The boxing icon was said to be in stable
condition, but kept overnight as a precaution - our hearts go out to the
beloved Lou Duva and all his family. |
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