Boxing News Boxing News
It was an extremely exciting night of boxing last evening at the Contender Finale at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.
Sakio Bika, 25-3-2 (16), knocked out 23 year old Jaidon Codrington, 18-2 ( 14), in what must be considered a favorite for fight of the year and round of the year.
At the opening bell of round one, Bika came out swinging and landed a looping left hook that sent Codrington to the canvas. Codrington got right up and Bika jumped on him again, hoping for a replay of what occurred to Jaidon against Allen Green last year.
But this time Codrington landed a perfect counter punch and sent Bika down. Bika was hurt through the reminder of the round and Codrington was able to land hard shots almost at will. It was easily the most exciting round in the history of the Contender series and without a doubt, the best single round of boxing I have witnessed all year.
The fight continued to at a furious pace in rounds two thru four, as both men landed hard crisp punches but it was the experience and timing of Bika that won him the rounds. Codrington began to have trouble with Bika when he put up his guard and allowed Bika to pound him through and around his gloves. Jaidon was able to land hard shots when he stepped back, but he was unable to capitalize when he had Bika hurt.
By the fifth round, both men were obviously getting winded but sheer will and heart kept them upright. Jaidon once again had some great moments, but Bika outlasted him and landed a hard uppercut that almost sent Codrington down again.
The pace slowed considerably in the sixth as Codrington stayed on the outside for the first half of the round. But Bika amped up his pressure in the last minute of the round and his experience and heart won him once again gave him the edge.
Bika finished it off in the eighth as he threw hard looping hooks from both the right and left side that were landing flush. Codrington slumped back on the ropes and found himself facing the crowd when the referee stepped in to stop the fight at 2:18 of the eighth round.
With the victory, Bika claims the prize of Contender Season 3 Champion and nets himself $750,000. The fight is sure to garner praise from every boxing fan in the world and will most definitely vault both Sakio Bika and Jaidon Codrington to new heights in their boxing careers.
In the Bronze Medal bout, Sam Soliman, 35-10 (13), utilized his awkward style and punching angles to defeat the highly overmatched Wayne Johnsen, 17-3 (9), by unanimous decision.
Soliman’s experience and complex style gave Johnsen fits throughout the bout as he landed the harder and more numerous punches the entire fight.
With the win, Soliman earns himself the third place prize of $50,000 and helps him to procure more big fights in the future.
For Wayne Johnsen, although he looked bad against Soliman, (and who doesn’t?) the Contender experience gets his name into the mind of the boxing public and is sure to set up some of the biggest money fights of his career.
The official scores were 60-54 twice and 59-55.
In the first fight of the evening, David Banks, 15-3-1 (2), scored a majority decision over Donny McCrary, 23-7-2 (13). The fight was an entertaining six round middleweight bout that saw both men land big shots throughout, but it was the counter punching and defensive skills of Banks that helped him pull out the win.
Banks came out of the gate firing as he landed numerous hard right hands upstairs and then reverted to his counter punching style throughout the remainder of the fight. McCrary had Banks hurt in the sixth, but wasn’t able to finish him off. The official scores were 58-56 twice and 57-57.
