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Two fights. Five knockdowns. Four minutes and 15 seconds of heart-pounding action.
In arguably the most thrilling telecast in the six-year history of “ShoBox,” James Kirkland and Alfredo Angulo each scored first-round TKOs in separate bouts Friday on SHOWTIME.
Kirkland (21-0, 18 KOs), of Austin, Texas, took another step toward a world title opportunity by overcoming an early knockdown to drop Allen Conyers twice and stop him at 2:56 of the opening round.
In the co-feature from the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, Calif., Alfredo “El Perro” Angulo (11-0, eight KOs), kept his perfect record in tact by scoring two knockdowns en route to a first-round TKO over Archak Ter Meliksetian in the first round.
Gary Shaw Productions, LLC, presented the exciting doubleheader, which aired on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).
“That was the craziest two rounds of boxing that I have ever seen,” said Francisco Salazar of www.fightnews.com, who covered the action from ringside.
Kirkland made his fourth consecutive “ShoBox” appearance of 2007 and fought at Chumash for the fifth time in six outings.
“I showed that I can take a punch and come back strongly,” Kirkland said. “I should have listened to my corner and keep my hands up. I tell young fighters to keep their hands up, so I need to practice what I preach.
“I knew that Conyers was going to be tough. He came out quickly and caught me with a good shot early in the first round. But, I dropped him with a nice left to the head and then finished him with a one-two combination at the end of the first.”
“ShoBox” expert analyst Steve Farhood said the Kirkland fight is one for the ages.
“The main event is an obvious candidate for ‘Fight of the Year,’ Farhood said. “For drama and excitement, this has to be the best round of ‘ShoBox’ in 102 shows.”
Farhood said that Conyers (11-3, nine KOs) was impressive in defeat.
“That was no flash knockdown that Kirkland suffered,” Farhood said. “We said before the fight that Conyers’ best chance was to play Russian roulette. He did and came close to winning.
“This was the first time in Kirkland’s career that he faced adversity. He responded the way you thought he would by punching back. The excitement this fight produced is further evidence of why Kirkland could be the most exciting prospect we featured on ShoBox in 2007.”
Angulo (11-0, eight KOs), of Coachella, Calif., dropped Ter Meliksetian approximately one minute into the short and thrilling contest following a furious exchange from both fighters. The stablemate of WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Chad Dawson and a 2004 Olympic representative from Mexico ended matters early when he dropped Ter Meliksetian again moments later. Dr. Lou Moret immediately waved the bout off following the second knockdown at 1:19 of round one.
“I came out with my strategy to work slowly,” Angulo said. “I knew it was going to be a difficult fight, but Ter Meliksetian came in really fast. He surprised me because I thought he was going to box.
“I landed a right cross and another right hand ended the fight. Some people wondered why I took this fight since I only had 10 professional fights. This shows I could step up in class and fight.”
Ter Meliksetian (16-6, 13 KOs), of Paterson, N.J., took the action to Angulo early in round one and controlled the action early. However, the hard-hitting Armenian, making his second “ShoBox” appearance, could not stay away from Angulo’s power and lost for the fifth time in six bouts.
Nick Charles called the action from ringside with boxing historian Steve Farhood serving as expert analyst. The executive producer of “ShoBox” is Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing.
Friday’s bouts will re-air this week as follows:
DAY CHANNEL
Saturday, Dec. 1, at Midnight ET/PT SHOTOO
Monday, Dec. 3, at 10 p.m. ET/PT SHO EXTREME
Tuesday, Dec. 4, at Midnight ET/PT SHO EXTREME
Thursday, Dec. 6, at 11 p.m. ET/PT SHOTOO
For more information on “ShoBox: The New Generation” and SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecasts, including complete fighter bios, records, related stories and more, please go to the SHOWTIME website at http://www.sho.com/boxing.
