Photo by Rosie Cohen/SHOWTIME® – Talented unbeaten middleweight Antoine Douglas made an impressive 2015 debut thoroughly outboxing previously unbeaten Thomas LaManna before finishing him by TKO at 2:44 of the sixth-round in the main event of a night of knockouts on ShoBox: The New Generation Friday from The Space at Westbury in Westbury, N.Y.
Douglas (17-0-1, 10 KOs), of Washington, D.C., controlled the bout from the opening bell and was the more active and accurate fighter, throwing 127 total punches to LaManna’s 73. LaManna (16-1, 7 KOs), of Millville, N.J., was tough and tried to counter, but wasn’t experienced enough to land anything meaningful against the skilled Washingtonian. Douglas employed a diverse and ferocious attack of uppercuts, hooks and jabs knocking LaManna down twice before scoring the knockout in an exciting win.
“I put the work in at the gym and that made it easy. It took me longer than I thought it would, but I got the job done,” said Douglas. “I thought I hurt him early in the fight now and then. I just wanted to keep the ball rolling from here.”
“He’s a good fighter, fast and strong. He’s everything I thought he would be. It was a learning experience for me,” said LaManna. “He caught me with a good shot. The first knockdown wasn‘t a knockdown. The last one, I was off balance, but he caught me with a good shot. He was the better man tonight.”
“The last time Douglas fought on ShoBox, it was a very unsatisfying fight because he was held to a draw and he faded late. This time, he took control the first 30 seconds of the first round, won every round, and then, just as you thought that the only thing that he needed to do was put an exclamation point on the performance, that’s what he did by scoring three knockdowns in the sixth,” said Boxing Historian and SHOWTIME Analyst Steve Farhood. “Douglas took down a fighter that had never been down before. This was a very impressive performance that reestablished him as a top 160-pound American prospect.”
In the co-feature of a thrilling quadrupleheader, unbeaten southpaw Ismael “El Tigre” Barroso (17-0-2, 16 KOs), of El Tigre, Venezuela, scored his 13th consecutive victory earning the NABO Lightweight Title with a TKO over determined Issouf “Volcano” Kinda (17-3, 7 KOs), of Bronx, N.Y. The stoppage happened just three seconds deep in the sixth after Kinda appeared to have problems with his vision.
Barroso dominated from the early rounds despite a nasty cut above his right eye in the third and another below his left eye in the fourth, both from accidental heabutts from Kinda.
“I fight better when I’m worried. I had to get worried I would lose so I knew I had to fight my best,” said Barroso. “The cuts bothered me a little but I had a job to do. I thank God everything went well once I started to fight the way I fight.”
Kinda was rushed to the hospital with a possible orbital fracture. This is the second time he has experienced vision problems in his last three fights.
Skilled Jerry “The King’s Son” Odom (13-1, 1 NC, 12 KOs), of Washington D.C., avenged his lone loss with a first-round TKO against formerly unbeaten Andrew “Hurricane” Hernandez (8-1-1, 1 ND, 1 KO) of Phoenix, Ariz., in a super middleweight rematch.
Odom delivered his 12th knockout in 13 fights at 2:47 of the first by throwing solid jabs and strong connecting power shots. Hernandez attempted to counterpunch, but he was quickly finished by the talented Odom.
“I told you he couldn’t beat me. He caught me at a bad moment in the first fight,” said Odom. “I did it like my idol Roy Jones did it. After I hit him, I saw him smile, so I knew I hurt him. I did to him this time what I was on the way to doing in the first fight.”
Although it was clear that Hernandez was hurt, he challenged the referee call.
“I don’t know how the referee sleeps at night. He made a huge mistake,” said Hernández. “I was dominating. As soon as he landed a punch, they stopped the fight. I want a third fight. The world saw and will demand a rubber match.”
In the opening bout of the telecast, San Antonio’s Adam “Mantequilla” Lopez (10-0, 5 KOs) kept his record unblemished by delivering a second-round TKO at 1:42 with a strong left hook over fellow countryman Pablo “El Zankudo Letal” Cruz (11-1, 3 KOs) in a battle of Lone Star State super bantamweights.
“I hurt my left hand in the first round, but I knocked him out with the same punch a round later. I’m looking forward to fighting on SHOWTIME again,” said Lopez.
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Antoine Douglas vs. Thomas LaManna Final Weights, Quotes
Undefeated welterweight Antoine Douglas tipped the scale at 159¾ pounds and fellow unbeaten Thomas LaManna measured 157¾ pounds during Thursday’s official weigh-in for tomorrow’s ShoBox: The New Generation quadrupleheader.
At just 23 years old, Douglas (16-0-1, 10 KOs) is one of boxing’s fastest-rising prospects. The aggressive and exciting Washington, D.C., native will make his 2015 debut against LaManna (16-0, 7 KOs) in the main event of ShoBox: The New Generation, live on SHOWTIME (10 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast) from The Space at Westbury in Westbury, N.Y.
In the co-feature, unbeaten southpaw Ismael Barroso (16-0-2, 15 KOs), of El Tigre, Venezuela, will shoot for his 13th consecutive victory when he faces Issouf “Volcano” Kinda (17-2, 7 KOs), of Bronx, N.Y., in a 10-round scrap for the NABO Lightweight Title. Barroso weighed 134 pounds, Kinda 133½ pounds.
In an eight-round featured bout, once-beaten Jerry “The King’s Son” Odom (12-1, 1 NC, 11 KOs), of Washington D.C., will try and avenge his lone loss when he takes on undefeated Andrew “Hurricane” Hernandez (8-0-1, 1 ND, 1 KO) of Phoenix, Ariz., in a super middleweight rematch. Odom weighed 168 pounds, Hernandez 167¾ pounds.
In the opening bout, Adam Lopez (9-0, 4 KOs), of San Antonio, and Houston’s Pablo Cruz (11-0, 3 KOs) clash in an eight-round battle of Lone Star State super bantamweights. Lopez tipped scale at 121½ pounds, Cruz weighed 120¾ pounds.
Advance tickets for the event promoted by GH3 Promotions and Greg Cohen Promotions in association with David Schuster’s Winner Take All Productions, are priced at $150, $125, and $60 for general admission. Tickets are available at Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster locations, thespacewestbury.com, The Space at Westbury Box Office at 516.283.5566 or by calling the GCP Office at 212.851.6425.
The event is sponsored by Foxwoods Resort Casino & Westbury Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge and Ram Dealership & Maxim Group.
Here’s what the fighters had to say before Thursday’s weigh-in:
Antoine Douglas:
“The key is that I learn from my past experiences. Everything is a lesson. It’s only considered a loss if you don’t learn from it.
“I’m a disciplined fighter so once I enter the ring, the switch is on. That’s my comfort zone.
“If you look at my story, you see I’ve been through adversity all my life. Being in the ring is just another step for something I’m fighting for. I have people to fight for, burdens to get off my shoulder, my life is a fight. Once I step in the ring, it’s go time, I handle all my business there.
“I know what I worked on and what I prepared myself to do, so I don’t go in the ring expecting anything. If you go in expecting something, you may end up on the other side of that expectation, so I just do what I came to do, fight hard and win. If you go in expecting things, you’re going on a one-way path.
“Any man you get in the ring with, no matter how big or small, has the capability to do damage. I take on every fight with the same intensity and thought process; I can’t worry about anything else.”
Thomas LaManna:
“People try to underestimate me based on my appearance but once they get hit, it’s another story. I know Douglas is taking me seriously since he knows me from the amateurs. It’s in his best interest to take me seriously.
“I know I’m good at what I do, and that’s boxing. During my first fights, if I got hit, everything went out the window and I was ready to rumble. My new trainer helped me control my mental strength while really using my reach, but the key is to stick to the game plan.
“This opportunity to fight on SHOWTIME was too good to pass up. I want everyone to see that I’m the real deal. The press has said a lot of positive things about me and I want to live up to that. The risk and reward factor about this fight is getting out and being seen. I know what I can do but not everyone has seen it yet.
“I love the fact you have two 23-year-old young undefeated fighters getting in the ring. As a boxing fan, I think that makes for a great fight. I’m fortunate to be a part of a card with two legit young fighters. We’re both where we’re at for a reason.
“I believe in my shots and power. Any shot I throw, I believe in it. My skills, talent and hard work are what brought me here.”
Ismael Barroso:
“I want the U.S. fans to think of me as a great fighter who comes to go to war. I come to knock people out.
“In Cuba in 2001, I sparred someone on the Cuban National Team and laid him out cold.. As I kept training, I developed more power.
I’m in great shape. I trained for four months for this fight and I’m ready. I could go 12 rounds if I had to.
“He [Kinda] is just another fighter. This fight is mine. I will knock him out or get a decision. We took this guy because nobody wants to fight him. He [Kinda] has never been knocked out, but look at who he has fought.”
Issouf Kinda
“I have never been knocked down. I have never been hurt. And I don’t think that’s going to change now.
“This guy has never fought anybody like me. He thinks he can knock everybody out, but I’m not just another guy. I’m tougher than everybody he has ever fought. He’s not going to knock me down.
“I know how to fight a southpaw. I’m experienced. I can box. He better be ready.
“I’m going to show him he is fighting a man. If he punches me, I’m going to punch him back.”
Jerry Odom:
“I don’t think he wants to fight me. He’s just doing it because he has to. I’m not going to say I regret what I did to Hernandez in our first fight because I was just trying to get the win, so I went for the kill.
“Before I even saw fighting on TV or even started boxing, I knew how to fight. Where I come from, I was used to adversity so my instinct was to fight no matter what.
“When I changed trainers, it was for the better. We had a mutual understanding so there were no hard feelings. Instead of going to train in different places, my workouts feel more professional. I get everything I need in one session. I’ve been able to break down my old habits in order to show my real talent.”
Andrew Hernandez:
“He fought dirty the first time around. He hit me with a blow and I took a knee and while I was down, he punched me again.
“He’s definitely overrated. He’s fought a lot of tomato cans. I’m going to expose him. I’m sharper and better than him in all aspects, no question.
“I took the rematch because that’s not the victory I wanted. I wanted a knockout. I’ll get it this time around. I’m going for it with all I have.
“I heard some people questioning my punching power. I boxed Odom with an injured hand and I outboxed him. I’m healthy and in great shape now. I’m going to knock him out. You better be watching.”
Adam Lopez:
“Cruz is my countryman. I’ve seen him fight. I even sparred with him a while back and I can say with certainty that I outboxed him.
“This is the first time I’m going eight rounds, but I’m not concerned about it. I trained very well. I’m in the best shape I have ever been.
“Fighting on this card is a great opportunity for me. I’ve been under the radar most of my career, but now I have the opportunity to be on SHOWTIME, national television. I feel so blessed.”
Pablo Cruz
“It took me over nine years to get here. I worked hard, really hard and I’m not going to let this opportunity slip away.
“This is a huge fight for me, perhaps the biggest one of my career. I will go at him with everything I got.
“I’m not taking him lightly. I respect him as a fighter, but I’m hungry. I’m very hungry and I’ll do what it takes to get the job done. Tomorrow is my time and I’ll shine.”
