Former world champion, D.C. favorite goes out in style
After winning a unanimous decision from Cory “Black Ice” Cummings Saturday night at Patriot Center, popular D.C. fighter and former world champion William Joppy called it a career, announcing his decision in the ring.
Joppy, 40, upstaged headliner Jimmy Lange, who battled 10 rounds to decision Indiana schoolteacher Jimmy Holmes.
Joppy, a light heavyweight, finishes his career with a 40-7-2 record. In November, Joppy and Cummings fought to a draw at Patriot Center in 10 spectacular and brutal rounds.
“Twenty years in the game, that’s it for me. Lord blessed me throughout my career. I’ve been to the mountaintop,” Joppy said. “I got my 40th win. I’ve been trying to get my 40th win for the last year and a half. It’s time to move on.”
Saturday’s fight was full of action as Cummings (17-5-1) came forward relentlessly, while the veteran Joppy side-stepped and counter-punched. Joppy took some punishment; his left eye swollen shut by the ninth round. But his experience and professionalism was telling.
“He hit me with some good shots tonight,” Joppy said. “He’s like Joe Frazier. He’s gonna be right there for you. If you miss him, you must be trying to miss him.”
The end obviously was near for Joppy, who had failed to win in his previous four fights.
His best moments Saturday came in the seventh round when he staggered Cummings. The Baltimore fighter returned the favor in the ninth round. But with fans chanting his name in a stirring 10th round, Joppy rose to the cheers and sealed the decision with some of his best work.
“I’m tired of fighting,” Joppy said. “I realized that, trying to make weight for this fight. The weight is hard to come off now. It doesn’t come off like it used to.”
Lange and Holmes evenly matched
All the judges scored Jimmy Lange’s unanimous decision over Jimmy Holmes, 97-92. It wasn’t that decisive.
For 10 rounds, Lange (35-4-2) of Great Falls battled to gain control of the fight against the Indiana physical education teacher, who had never boxed outside of his home state. Judging from the faces of the fighters afterward, Holmes (19-2) took the worst of it. But the fight was one where they mostly traded blows.
Pryor detonates ‘TNT’
Mark Tucker of Eldersburg entered with a Mohawk haircut, a charismatic nickname (“TNT”), and a perfect record, but he was no match Saturday night for unheralded Larry “Hitman” Pryor of the District.
Pryor came in with a losing record, but the light-heavyweight dominated Tucker in a decisive, unanimous decision. After a slow start, Pryor buckled Tucker’s knees with a straight right hand to the head in the fourth round. Tucker kept his feet, but fought defensively from then on, never mounting an assault.
Tucker (15-1) was a stationary target, absorbing lefts and rights to the head and midsection throughout. The left-hander never had Pryor in trouble. Two judges scored the fight 79-73, another had it 78-74.
With new management, the 29-year-old Pryor (7-8), a graduate of Frederick High, believes his best years are ahead.
“I took myself for granted several years, due to family issues, due to bad management,” said Pryor. “But now you’ll be seeing a lot more of me.”
Jeter survives scoring malfunction
When Mike McFail of Baltimore was announced the winner in a unanimous decision over Tony “Mo Better” Jeter it was hard to tell which middleweight fighter was more surprised. As the bloodied McFail threw his arms up in celebration, Jeter’s jaw dropped in shock.
After boos rained down on the ring, and Jeter had appealed to the judges, order was restored. The result had been relayed incorrectly to the announcer. Jeter was the winner, 70-63, on all three of the judges’ cards.
It was the only explanation for a fight dominated by Jeter (11-2-1) who won for the eighth straight time following two years out of the sport.
Jeter, from Stevensville, sent McFail (12-42-2) to the canvas at the end of the opening round. Two rounds later, McFail went down twice without being hit. It was the cumulative effect of the relentless assault of Jeter, who landed pinpoint shots throughout.
McFail hurt Jeter in each of the final two rounds, but the favorite closed with flurries in both rounds, leaving no doubt about the decision, until it was incorrectly announced.
Sigmon in mismatch
With a 3-18-3 record, “hope” was the appropriate theme tattooed on the leg of light-heavyweight John “The Baptist” Terry of Virginia Beach. Despite his record, Terry always puts on a show, swinging from his heels and playing to the crowd.
In his match with Scott “Cujo” Sigmon of Bedford, Va., Terry landed the first combination, but again found himself in the deep end of the talent pool, suffering a fourth-round TKO.
Terry survived a second-round knockdown, but after absorbing more punishment for two more rounds, the referee waved the fight over at 1:16 of the fourth.
In his first fight at Patriot Center, the 23-year-old Sigmon (15-2) earned his seventh knockout. He was scheduled to fight Robbie “Taz Devil” Tovar (15-6-1), who pulled out after sustaining an injury.
Akinyanju takes a Gamble
With 536 pounds of heavyweights in the ring, the thud of leather to flesh was the prevailing sound in a bout between left-hander Abodurin “Bo” Akinyanju of Landover and Ron “Heavy Duty” Gamble, 28, of Arnold.
Both managed to remain upright for four rounds, the 6-foot-2, 280-pound Akinyanju winning on a split decision, to avenge a 2009 Golden Gloves loss to Gamble when both were amateurs.
The 6-2, 256-pound Gamble, a police officer, is a former football player at Hammond High in Columbia, who went on to start four years at UConn.
Other Fights: In the night’s opening bout, middleweight George “Wartime” Rivera of Charlottesville improved to 12-6 with a unanimous decision over Shakir Ashanti (16-10) of Greensboro, N.C. … Fairfax welterweight Todd Wilson remained undefeated when Dean “Pitbull” White of Smithsburg was disqualified after three rounds. White (15-11-2) was warned repeatedly for holding, hitting below the belt, and fighting after the bell. Wilson improved to 10-0.
