Written and Photos taken on a Canon Rebel EOS T6i by Tyler Polk
Any card held by Integrity Fighter Promotions and Conn-Greb Boxing Club is a friendly atmosphere. Every interaction between people, be it boxer, promoter, attendee, photographer, or trainer. It looks more like a family reunion, than a night at the fights.
Fall Fisticuffs II last Saturday night at Printscape Arena at Southpointe was no exception, a packed card with seven fights that delivered excitement throughout the night.
The opening bout of the evening was a lightweight bout between Max Leasock, making his pro debut at the age of 19 with less than 24 hours' notice and MMA veteran Varon "Mighty Moe" Webb (0-4).
The fight was a tale of experience being a little too much. Round one, both combatants traded blows, Webb wins the round with a three-hit combo, and an excellent 1-2 as the highlights. Webb was initiating more offense throughout the fight and continued his run with round two.
Leasock would fight back, but Webb would counter. In round three, Leasock's corner was yelling, "Let's Go," urging him to throw straights. Leasock did jus that and forced Webb to switch up his attack.
In Round four, Webb caught Leasock for a knockdown, but the young man got up and continued to battle and finish the round. The decision was unanimous, with all three judges scoring the bout 40-35 in favor of Webb earning him his first win in professional boxing.
The next contest was the anticipated debut of "TTG" Johnny Spell facing Antonio Luciane in a four-round lightweight fight.
In short, TTG was ready to go (RTG) against Luciane. Spell had a couple of sweet three-hit combos. Though at one put, Spell had his opponent in the corner, Luciane battled out of the corner with three punches of his own.
It was a teachable moment as Spell entered the next round with a focused attack, attacking the body in between his opponent trying to get back on track.
Throughout most of the fight, he has shown himself to be a typical Mike McSorley fighter, putting combos together and pressuring Luciane (0-1). He would go on to end the fight with a TKO in the fourth round — a great start for the hometown fighter.
The third contest was a Junior Middleweight clash between Jordan "The Croatian Warrior" Zlacki (1-1) and Deon "The Bloodhound" Goodlow (1-2).
Both started the fight in a phonebooth. Zlacki was more aggressive, but Goodlow was keeping pace, giving the crowd some good action. Round two, the match remained close quarters, so much that referee Tim Shipley urged them to watch their heads in close. Zlacki threw sweeping right hooks into Goodlow's body throughout the round, winning the round and the next three as well.
Zlacki's swings were pretty vicious and, as previously stated, sweeping. It's like a geography lesson almost. They started so low; they looked like they would begin at Printscape, the old practice facility of the Penguins, to the new facility in Cranberry.
Both men were given a round of applause for an action-packed fight. Zlacki wins the battle with judges scoring 40-36, 39-37, and 40-36.
The final fight before intermission was an 8 round super-bantamweight contest between Oleg Dovhun (9-0) and Derrick Wilson (12-8-2).
This was indeed a fight for people who appreciates technique in boxing. Wilson had landed some shots that made it interesting early, but Dovhun starts settling in as the first round continues. He split the gloves of Wilson to land his shots.
As the fight continued into round two, it settled into an ideal fight by Dovhun's standards. He was freely moving around Wilson throwing and landing shots. His strategy wore down his opponent, with head and body shots. Dovhun scored a TKO in the third round, as Wilson staggered onto a knee from Dovhun's pressure.
After the intermission, our first championship fight of the night was for the Pennsylvania Cruiserweight Championship.
Lyubomyr "The Demolition Man" Pinchuk (11-1-1) vs. Garrett "The Ultimate Warrior" Wilson (18-16-1).
This fight had a spirited start. Pinchuk initiated early, but Wilson stuck with it through the first three rounds. Wilson had a nice dodge for a mini flurry in round three, but Pinchuk answered with streams of punches.
In round four, Pinchuk started to pull away, it would seem Wilson would try to get the blow that would swing the fight back his way, but it never happened. When he would get a few chances, Pinchuk would answer right back.
Wilson gave himself a chance, but the Ukrainian proved too much for him. Pinchuk caps off a busy 2019 with another win and another championship. The judges gave him a unanimous decision with scores of 78-74, 79-73, and 79-73.
A four-round super middleweight fight between Pittsburgh's "Pretty" Richie Cantolina and West Virginia's Brock Willis was dubbed the Backyard Brawl by ring announcer "The Lyrical Gangster" Matt Antonucci. But what transpired looked more like backyard wrestling.
The crowd was certainly on the side of Cantolina, coming out to Sweet Caroline. Both men engaged in a battle that had more takedowns and clinches than punches. The crowd was undoubtedly anxious for punches, not takedowns. It seemed like when Cantolina got going, Willis would go for clinches.
Referee Tim Shipley wanted less holds and more boxing before round three and briefly to begin the round they rained shots. Then another takedown sent Cantolina through the middle rope on his neck, boxing historian Douglas Cavanaugh being a few ringside people saving him from crashing through the table. Willis wasn't deducted a point for the takedown, and both competitors exchanged words at the bell.
Whoever fought cleaner in the final round without grappling would win this fight. Cantolina throws a shot, and Willis rushes in for a clinch, taking his opponent through the ropes. Again, no points were deducted. The crowd booed, over the excessive clinches and takedowns and unpleasantries rang through the building about state pride.
The crowd wanted Cantolina to knock out Willis, but the final round ends.
The decision was unanimous, 40-36, 39-37, 39-37 for Cantolina. After the fight, he took to the mic to announce his family was expecting their sixth child and a rousing speech urging people to make a difference in people's lives no matter their beliefs.
The final match of the night was for the Steel City Heavyweight Championship. Michael "The Pittsburgh Bull" Manna vs. Ryan Covert. Both men have combined to win five out of nine bouts. All five wins came by knockout.
"If the UFC can make up belts, we can, too," announced Antonucci. This fight is planned to be both men's last. Pride, memories are on the line.
Covert decked in American Flag trunks came out to "Real American," better known for being Hulk Hogan's WWE theme song. Before the bell rang, Manna received sing-song "Manna" chants from the crowd. There was a knockout coming, and the question would be who is on the receiving end and when would it happen.
Round one seemed like both men measured their opponent, setting up their go-to punch, sure to bring their opponent down and the house down.
In round two, it seemed like a repeat of round one was on the schedule, then Manna got his shot. A right hook, his trademark drops Covert to the canvas. To his credit, he got up almost immediately, but referee Gary Rosato called an end to the fight 14 seconds into Round 2.
A Hollywood ending for Manna, but many in the crowd disagreed with the decision, wanting to see if Covert would answer back or Manna strike again.
Through it all, this was the fight everyone wanted to see and ended the way everyone thought the night would end by knockout. Who would get the victory, was the question.
Both men were warriors in their careers and gave a great fight. Strong performances by all the competitors in the ring on Saturday.