Scott Wagner is promoting his 88th Ballroom Boxing fight card Thursday at Michael?s Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie.
In each case, Wagner is not afraid to tell the truth if he feels a fight was great or didn?t live up to his expectations. This card, Wagner said, has the possibilities of being the best Ballroom Boxing edition yet, including the shows featuring former heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman.
Wagner said he expects to have at least six fights take place Thursday, including a number of fights with boxers who have local roots. The main event features Silver Spring native Darnell Wilson (18-5-3, 15 knockouts) taking on Daniel Judah (21-1-3, 10 KOs) in a scheduled 10-round cruiserweight fight.
Wilson is a Ballroom favorite, having fought there on 13 previous occasions. But he has lost his last four fights, all away from Michael?s Eighth Avenue, and is facing the brother of Zab Judah, the former welterweight champion of the world.
“Darnell Wilson against Zab Judah could be the best fight we have ever had at the Ballroom,” Wagner said. “I usually don?t get to watch the fights because I?m too busy. But Thursday night, I plan to be in my seat by 10:30 to catch this fight.”
Other local boxers set to compete Thursday are all from Baltimore: junior lightweight Tyrell Samuel (7-0, 5 KOs), welterweight Tim Coleman (5-0, 1 KO) and junior middleweight Ishmail Arvin (14-0-2, 6 KOs). Samuel will face Cuban Jorge Ruiz (4-1), while Arvin, fighting for the 12th time in Glen Burnie, faces Dominican Republic native David Toribio (12-5, 7 KOs). Coleman?s opponent is yet to be determined.
Wagner said he is making more of an effort to get local boxers to compete on his card because the quality of the fighters in the Baltimore area has improved dramatically in recent years.
“We?ve got fighters here that hit and aren?t afraid to take a hit, and that is what the people want to see,” Wagner said. “We always try to give the fans a little bit of everything.”
