(COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO) –Terrell Gausha (Cleveland, Ohio) and Jose Ramirez (Avenal, Calif.) picked up where their U.S. teammates left off last night with dominating wins in their opening bouts of the Americas Qualifier. Super heavyweight Dominic Breazale (Alhambra, Calif.) closed the night with a comeback win to keep his Olympic hopes alive.
Gausha was the first of the three U.S. boxers to take the ring on Monday and he set a winning tone in his bout with Nicaragua’s Oliver Ballestro. The American middleweight got off to a quick start, sending Ballestro to the canvas with the first of two standing eight counts in the first. Yet Ballestro managed to survive the first round onslaught with Gausha taking an 11-2 lead into the second round. Despite his opponent’s holding, Gausha took a 14-3 advantage into the last round and went on to win a 22-5 final decision. The victory earns Gausha a berth in the quarterfinal round he will look to punch his ticket for London on Wednesday in a bout with Puerto Rico’s Enrique Collazo.
Ramirez battled Michael Alexander of Trinidad and Tobago in his tournament opener and he sent a message in his first bout. Following a tied first round, Ramirez turned up the heat, taking a commanding 12-3 lead into the final round. He kept the punches flowing in the third round, stopping Alexander with just over 30 seconds remaining in the bout. Ramirez joins Gausha in Wednesday’s quarterfinals where he will take on Alejandro Rynn of Canada for a spot in London.
Breazale kept Team USA on the winning side of the scoreboard with a thrilling comeback victory in his super heavyweight contest with Jose Payares of Venezuela. The 6-6 former quarterback trailed after each of the first two rounds, facing a 4-3 deficit after one and trailing 8-5 with three minutes of action remaining. Yet Breazale wouldn’t be denied, charging back in the third round and outscoring Payares by a 7-2 margin to win a 12-10 final decision and keep his Olympic hopes alive. Breazale will take on Brazil’s Gidelson Silva in Wednesday’s quarterfinal action.
A trio of U.S. boxers will take the ring on Tuesday with light welterweight Jamel Herring (Coram, N.Y.) and light heavyweight Marcus Browne (Staten Island, N.Y.) looking to officially qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games with victories. Herring and Browne will face Yoelvis Hernandez of Venezuela and the Dominican Republic’s Felix Valera respectively. Heavyweight Michael Hunter (Las Vegas, Nev.) will be the third American boxer competing on Tuesday as he takes on Marcio Figueroa of Nicaragua. Browne will box in the early session with Herring and Hunter competing in the evening.
To follow live scoring of the bouts, go to http://88.85.4.8/results-daily-off_E.html.
U.S. Results
132 lbs: Jose Ramirez, Avenal, Calif./USA stopped Michael Alexander, TRI, RSC-3
165 lbs: Terrell Gausha, Cleveland, Ohio/USA dec. Oliver Ballestro, NIC, 22-5
201+ lbs: Dominic Breazale, Alhambra, Calif./USA dec. Jose Payres, VEN, 12-10
USA Boxing, as the national governing body for Olympic-style boxing, is the United States’ member organization of the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) and a member of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).