The Bengal Bouts quarterfinals kicked off at 7 p.m. Tuesday night, beginning with Ring A.
Buyi “B” Chen vs. Carlos “El Catracho” Espinoza Banegas
Chen threw the first punches countered by a couple body hits from Espinoza Banegas. Chen was quick but Espinoza Banegas got him on the defensive, cornering him twice. Chen got the start again but Espinoza Banegas answered, dominating the round. Chen had quite a few opportunities but Espinoza Banegas was more efficient as Chen needed two counts in the third. Ultimately, efficiency paid off as Espinoza Banegas won by unanimous decision, in front of an excited crowd that was decked out in “El Catracho” merch.
Colin “Can’t Touch This” Capece vs. Justin “Warrior” Gonzalez
Editor’s Note: Capece is an Assistant Managing Editor for The Observer.Capece struck first with a few combinations followed by an answer from Gonzalez. Both using their speed, the pair kept catching each other in a clinch for an even round. In the second round, Capece made contact first, knocking Gonzalez to the ground and forcing a count. Capece cornered Gonzalez toward the end of the round. In the third, Capece had Gonzalez on and off the ropes, knocking him back again and forcing another count. Capece’s increasing domination of each round led to his win by unanimous decision.
Jack “Topgun” Lannon vs. Glenn “Queens” Fiocca
In front of competing raucous crowds, these two fighters got off to an intense match. The pair landed punches left and right, each grabbing a dominant moment in the first round. In the second, Lannon dominated the start, getting Fiocca on the ropes and then again backing him into his corner of fans. Fiocca opened the third with a burst of energy but Lannon answered quickly, following Fiocca around the ring and eventually forcing the ref to pause the fight. After confusion with the timing, the fighters went for an extra 30 seconds, both landing a few extra hits. By unanimous decision, and to the thrill of the crowd from Knott Hall, Lannon won the bout.
Joey “The Milk Man” Brenner vs. Ryan “For the Love of the Game” Tressler
Both quick on their feet, it took a bit before either boxer landed a solid hit. The second round opened faster as both boxers connected far more frequently. Tressler got Brenner backpedaling early in the round but the bout plateaued again before Brenner landed a few solid punches knocking Tressler to the ground to close the round. Tressler needed another count to start the third following several headshots from Brenner who ended another round on the offensive. Brenner was named the winner by unanimous decision.
Ross “Roos” Mcilvaine vs. Alex “Baller” Flor
The first round passed pretty evenly. Mcilvaine swung first in the second followed by a few combinations from Flor. Flor connected a few more times before the round ended, knocking Mcilvaine into the ropes. Mcilvaine pushed it to start the third but Flor found control again, backing Mcilvaine up. Ultimately, his late-round dominance led Flor to a split-decision win.
Reed “Nonstop” Popp vs. Jack “The Hammer” Murphy
Murphy got Popp on his back foot early, landing a few separate combinations. The second round started fairly evenly but just before the bell, Murphy found an advantage again, getting Popp on the ropes. Murphy repeatedly landed combinations that knocked Popp’s head gear out of place and sent the senior backward, forcing a count just before the end of the round. Murphy won by unanimous decision.
Nicholas “Nick” Buhay vs. David “The Baker” Couri
Couri connected first with a headshot on Buhay but afterwards, the pair evened out. With 10 seconds in the first, Couri connected on a flurry of punches, while dodging the same from Buhay. To start the second, Buhay stepped on the offensive, landing a barrage of headshots. Despite a few answers, he kept Couri backpedaling and ultimately sent him to the ground off a combination at the close of the second round. Buhay opened the third on the offensive again, knocking Couri into the ropes and forcing a count. A tired Couri landed a few more hits but Buhay sent him into the ropes again. With second and third round dominance, Buhay won by unanimous decision.
Nolan “Lightning” Lyon vs. Patrick “Conk You in the Head” Conklin
Both quick on their feet, Lyon and Conklin exchanged combinations in the first with slight control on the match from Lyon. Conklin stayed out of Lyon’s reach until he could find a window to connect at the start of the second. But when Lyon could keep him still, he was able to take an advantage. The third round passed much like the first two. Each saw moments of dominance but it was Lyon’s ability to keep Conklin still that brought him to connect more often. To the thrill of a loud Carroll squad, Lyon won by unanimous decision.
Greg “Falcon” DeFalco vs. Griffin “Premium” Hawthorne
Hawthorne kept DeFalco backpedaling to start the round, knocking him against the ropes a few times, but couldn’t keep him there. DeFalco stepped up first in the second but Hawthorne quickly answered, ultimately cornering DeFalco twice. Hawthorne cornered DeFalco again to start the third round. DeFalco found one last burst of momentum but the pair were both tired at the close. After an emphatic embrace from the pair, the announcer named Hawthorne the winner by unanimous decision.
Mitchell “Mr. Snowman” MacDonald vs. Thomas “Clipz” Hintz
MacDonald dominated the first round, knocking Hintz down and even landing a flurry of punches while inches from the ropes. Hintz got a combination response in, but not before MacDonald went back on the offensive just before the round closed. In the second, the pair exchanged combinations until Hintz found a dominance late in the round. Hintz backed MacDonald into the corner twice early in the third and ultimately kept him on the ropes. Hintz’s late dominance earned him the unanimous-decision win.
Hector “Bueno” Juarez vs. Rob “The Voodoo Ranger” Rucki
Rucki and Juarez exchanged combinations from the get-go in round one. Both strong on the defensive end, the second round started similarly even but as Juarez started to tire, Rucki saw a bit more success to end the round. Juarez came out strong to start the third but Rucki fought him off and saw an advantage of his own. Rucki found another advantage with 10 seconds left and ultimately won the bout by unanimous decision.
Josh “Barstool Athlete” Williams vs. Jan “Janimal” Jhaveri
In a bout rooted in speed, Williams and Jhaveri kept pace with each other throughout the first round. Williams made contact first in the second, landing several headshots before Jhaveri got him on the ropes briefly. Williams landed a flurry of punches with Jhaveri on the ropes in the last significant advantage of the round. Despite loud chants of “Janimal,” Williams pulled away in the third, pushing Jhaveri along the ropes and into the corner for a count. Then Williams knocked him to the ground and won by a stopped contest from the referee.
Max “Putin’s Ukranian Nightmare” Chuma vs. Jackson “The Stallion” Graham
Chuma landed a few hits early but was quickly answered by Graham in the first round. Chuma kept them coming, though. To start the second, Graham sent Chuma into the ropes with a bloody nose. After a pause, Chuma found some footing but Graham answered quickly, forcing another pause before he found a third advantage within the round just before it ended. Chuma took an early advantage to start the third and maintained it most of the way through with a few bursts from Graham. Ultimately, the last push led Chuma to victory by split decision.
Kevin “Armando” Prata vs. Andrew “Red Scare” Cassidy
To a chorus of chants from a large Keenan crowd, Cassidy forced a count early for Prata and another one shortly after, both of which he came out of swinging. The second round held pretty even, with both boxers landing a few hits. Cassidy cornered Prata a few times and found an extra burst of energy as his fans got louder. At the close, Prata landed a few right hooks but not without answer from Cassidy. Cassidy ultimately won by split decision.
Will “Vlad” Covington vs. Jared “Scarface” Walsh
The matchup changed hands repeatedly in the first before Covington found an advantage and sent Walsh to the deck. Walsh found a brief advantage to start the second before a right hook sent him down again. He dropped one more time after that in the round. At the start of the third, Walsh received a count again but then found momentum to close the round. The winner by unanimous decision was Covington.
JT “Termite” Termini vs. Luke “Big Chunky” Sheridan-Rabideau
Sheridan-Rabideau stepped to a quick advantage to the thrill of the Keenan crowd, knocking Termini down early in the first and forcing a second count before the round ended. Termini landed first in the second, followed by a flurry of headshots from Sheridan-Rabideau until Termini cornered him. Sheridan-Rabideau took control of the third, staying out of Termini’s reach and forcing a count on Termini with a definitive right hook. By unanimous decision and to the thrill of the Keenan posse, Sheridan-Rabideau won the bout.
Rogba “The Bug” Ayoola vs. Connor “The Hound” Hinkes
Two competing crowds set the tone for this bout as the boxers came out swinging. Ayoola took an early advantage and maintained it through the first round as he got Hinkes on the ropes twice, under a flurry of headshots. Ayoola took another advantage to start the second round, and yet another after Hinkes asked for a pause due to a lost eye contact. Despite a few hits from Hinkes, Ayoola took control again, cornering Hinkes to close the round, and ultimately won by unanimous decision.
Noah “The Westport Widowmaker” Gagnon vs. Grayson “Dozer” Zinn
Zinn found an early advantage in the heavyweight event but Gagnon answered and the two went back and forth. Zinn cornered Gagnon, landing enough headshots to close the round with a count. Zinn struck first again in the second and ultimately got Gagnon on the ropes, forcing another count. Zinn set the tone again in the third, landing several headshots to force another count. Ultimately, Zinn won by unanimous decision.
