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This past Thursday night, Cedric Kushner’s Gotham Boxing presented a night of fights entitled “David and the Rising Stars” at Roseland Ballroom in New York City. The former heavyweight title challenger David Tua improved to 47-3-1 (40) in his fifth consecutive win since his return to the ring in 2005. His opponent Robert Hawkins drops to 21-7 (7), losing four of his last five bouts, including a 10 round loss to Samuel Peter in December, 2005.
The bout was competitive throughout the 10 round unanimous decision. Tua came out slow in the early rounds, later stating that he felt his timing was off. “I was making moves, getting the jab going, but somehow my movements were not connecting with what my mind was telling me.”
Tua picked up the pace against Hawkins in the late rounds, nearly knocking down the challenger at the end of the tenth. Hawkins took a barrage of punches yet remained standing through the end of the fight. When asked how he felt about his victory Tua replied, “I’m happy where I am at right now, but I know it’s not where I need to be, it’s going to take two or three more fights. I need to be busy this year and Cedric [Kushner] is working really hard to make that happen.”
The former heavyweight title challenger says there is nothing more important to him than winning the world title, but only when he feels he is ready. “Even though I have a name that can get me a title fight, it’s not about that. It’s not about taking short cuts; it’s about doing everything right. I understand I have a lot of old habits that I need to break.
“I really believe I am working with a very good teacher, Roger ([Bloodworth]. It’s about getting the basics down; it doesn’t matter if I have a good left hook or a right hand, if I don’t have the basics that allow me to get that off it means nothing.”
David Tua may need to improve his basic skills in the boxing ring, but his outlook on what it will take to get him there already proves that he is a champion.
Other results from the “Rising Stars” card:
Middleweights: 8 Rounds
Joe Greene 14-0 (11) KO1 Pat Coleman 29-14 (20)
Middleweights: 6 Rounds
Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin 9-0 (8) KO1 Steve Walker 20-15 (14)
Jr Welterweight: 8 Rounds
Jorge Teron 15-0-1 (9) UD8 Sebastian Hamel 6-7-1 (1)
Featherweight: 6 Rounds
Cindy Serrano 12-0-1 (7) UD6 Jessica Mohs 6-15-2 (1)
Heavyweight: 4 Rounds
Bill Shahan 3-0 (3) TKO1 Jon Schneider 3-1 (2)
Light Heavyweight: 6 Rounds
Frank Ronson 7-0 (4) UD6 Mike Word 3-6-3 (3)
Jr Featherweight: 4 Rounds
Juan Dominguez 1-0 (0) UD4 Francisco Palacios 0-1-2
Heavyweight: 4 Rounds
Darrel Madison 3-1 (2) UD4 Mike Jones 3-7 (1)
Super Featherweight: 4 Rounds
Juan Carlos Velasquez 1-0 (1) KO1 Stephan Arnold 0-3
Jr Featherweight: 4 Rounds
Carlos Velasquez 1-0 (0) UD4 Manuel Angulo 1-1 (1)
