There was plenty of shocks and scares on the Halloween weekend at JE Promotions’ seven-fight card in Maidstone on Saturday 29th October.
Firstly, the Kent-based promotional outfit had to desperately rescue the entire show after the obligatory ambulance service that has to be on standby at the venue had broken down on the motorway. A series of panicked phone calls eventually struck luck and another was scrambled to the scene allowing the show to commence almost two hours late.
Secondly, the return of the local heavyweight talent Tom Dallas ended frightfully with a second-round stoppage and his third consecutive loss, in what was meant to be his comeback fight.
Five months ago JE Promotions brought professional boxing to back Mote Park for the first time in 16 years and promoter Joe Elfidh followed up from that maiden Maidstone show with another exciting evening of boxing to please the sold-out crowd that filled every ringside table and bleacher seats; and it was very nearly a clean sweep for the JE Promotions fighters…
Bout 1: Tom McGinley (2-1-1) v Luke Fash (2-13-1)
The first bout of the night saw 29-year-old McGinley from Chelmsford narrowly defeat travelling opponent Fash 39-37 on points.
The 29-year-old southpaw from Essex began brightly, picking off his 26-year-old opponent from Yorkshire with sharp jabs.
The travelling fighter tried to win the second round but McGinley moved well throughout the three-minutes.
In the third and fourth rounds, Fash stepped up his work rate even further but McGinley emerged as the deserved winner, scored at 39-37 by referee Jeff Hinds.
Managed by Joe Elfidh, McGinley’s debut loss was due to an unfortunate cut caused by an accidental head clash.
Bout 2: Elvis Makoda (3-1-2) v Gyula Tallosi (12-14)
Middlesex super-lightweight Makoda won every round comfortably to further improve his peppered record.
‘Double El’, 26-years-old from Hayes, floored his Hungarian counterpart in the fourth and final round with a well-timed body shot.
The Budapest boxer played his part well, constantly covering up and holding wherever possible. Makoda found it difficult and couldn’t always work but he’ll be happy to have notched up another points win on the ledger scored at 40-35 with the knockdown.
Bout 3: Chris Matthews (5-0) v Roland Farago (3-2)
Super-featherweight Matthews moved up to 5-0 with a convincing win over winning fighter Farago.
The 21-year-old from Maidstone rocked the Hungarian, ranked seventh in his country, with a right hand in the opening round.
The unbeaten Kent puncher, trained by former European champion Johnny Armour, dominated the entire fight and kept his man on the ropes peppering in spiteful body shots repeatedly.
The 130-pounder is progressing impressively and demonstrated improving strength and power, perhaps a little unfortunate not to secure his first stoppage win on the night.
Bout 4: Charlie Shane (3-0) v Scott Hillman (0-10)
Southpaw Shane was sharp throughout the fight and a lot more controlled and calmer than his previous bout where he was lucky to escape point deductions following several warnings from the official.
The 25-year-old middleweight found his opponent Hillman to be a tough cookie, having never been stopped in his career, but he was definitely rocked a few times by the Chatham man.
The official in charge Jeff Hinds took a very close look during the last round but the 35-year-old from Eastbourne survived to hear the final bell toll.
Shane won every round at 40-36 and demonstrated an improved maturity and power in his performance to secure his third win in the pro ranks.
Bout 5: Louis Greene (5-0) v Geiboord Omier (3-10-1)
Greene is an aggressive fighter who applied intense pressure for the full six-round contest, which is why he has earned the nickname ‘The Medway Mauler’ for his style of fighting comparable to his idol Jack Dempsey.
The 24-year-old super-lightweight from Leysdown marched forward non-stop and ultimately got a bit sloppy and wild at times.
With two KO’s from the first four fights, the former Haringey Box Cup winner was perhaps guilty of being overeager to score another knockout.
Better than his record suggests, Omier, 26-years-old from Barcelona, was in with Prizefighter winner Johnnny Coyle just two weeks ago at the York Hall and comparisons were drawn that Louis is ready to mix it with a higher standard.
Bout 6: Oli Edwards (4-0) v Laszlo Kovacs II (9-5)
It was over before it had barely begun with Edwards scoring his first ever stoppage win in just 24 seconds.
The Hungarian southpaw tried to take the fight to the Sheppey 160-pounder but was outclassed by the sharper, crisper jabs from Edwards.
It was a laboured left hand from Kovacs that signalled the beginning of the end as the 21-year-old from Sheppey landed flush with a jab, followed up with a right hand over the top which pinned his man to the ropes, a further right-left-right combination to the head then finished him off.
Kovacs bravely rose to his feet but was far too unsteady to fight on. The travelling fighter came into the contest confidently, having reeled off two straight wins in his hometown of Budapest. The Hungarian’s last loss was to former Italian national champion Alesandro Goddi, who took three rounds to defeat the super-middleweight.
Edwards, who counts on Hall of Famer Joe Calzaghe for advice, is still very young but demonstrated his increasing power in the short space of time he was allowed – one to watch!
Bout 7: Tom Dallas (17-6) v Igor Mihaljevic (3-6)
The upset of the night was 31-year-old Tom Dallas conceding yet another loss in what was meant to be his comeback fight.
Dallas, trained by Ray Askew in Sheerness, dominated in the opening round working behind his jab well, walking his opponent down assiduously.
It wasn’t long before the Croatian was floored by the Chatham puncher and was given a standing eight-count by referee Jeff Hinds.
Sensing victory, Dallas went back to work but got caught with a left hook in his attempt to finish the 37-year-old Croatian and was wobbled backwards. A barrage of hooks to the head with his feet unsteady was enough for Hinds to jump in and wave the fight off with just four seconds to go in the second-round.
2:56 is proving to be an unlucky time on the clock for Dallas, having lost with just four seconds to go in the opening round of his last fight to former World heavyweight champion Charles Martin at Madison Square Garden.
The setting couldn’t have been any more different for Dallas but the result was discouragingly the same.
For tickets to the next show, visit https://www.facebook.com/JEsportsnetwork/ or call 07883 943994
