Undefeated middleweight Antoine "Action" Douglas (18-0-1, 12 KOs) of Washington D.C. finished off Istvan "The Prince" Szili (18-1-2, 8 KOs) of Frekendorf, Switzerland with an impressive third round TKO in the main event of ShoBox: The New Generation, Friday, July 17 from Sands Casino Hotel in Bethlehem, Pa. The event was televised live on SHOWTIME.
Both Douglas and Szili, had strong starts. Douglas exploited his reach advantage and strong right, while Szili showcased a few good combinations. However, Douglas showed dominance throughout the round by outlanding Szili 18-to-one in jabs.
Szili tried to wear Douglas down, but the 22-year-old Washingtonian countered the Swiss' attempts with great combinations and strong rights. Douglas knocked Szili down with a left hook and two big rights with less than 10 seconds to go in the second, but Szili pulled himself together to finish the round. "The Prince" never fully recovered and Douglas used his speed and powerful jabs to deliver two more knockouts causing the stoppage just 29 seconds into the third round.
"Tonight was a team effort and I'm really proud of us. I rely on my team to help me move forward and continue to be successful," Douglas said. "I will return again to fight under the SHOWTIME banner soon."
"This is the fourth time Antoine Douglas has fought on ShoBox, and I thought [Istvan] Szili would give him more trouble. I thought Szili would try to take him into the later rounds, but Douglas was much faster, much quicker on his feet. Szili made him look really good because Douglas was able to do whatever he wanted," said Boxing Historian and SHOWTIME analyst Steve Farhood."I've seen Douglas four times now, three wins and one draw and every time I take away the same thing: I want to see him again."
In the co-feature, Derrick "Take it to the Bank" Webster (19-1, 10 KOs) of Philadelphia, Pa. suffered his first loss against fellow unbeaten, 22-year-old Arif Magomedov (16-0, 9 KOs) of Glendale, Calif. by way of Russia in a one-sided 10-round middleweight matchup.
Magomedov impressed the crowd by outboxing the 33-year-old southpaw with poise and aggressiveness. He fought on the inside, pressuring Webster and dictating the pace of the fight. Webster struggled to adapt to his opponent's style, but picked up the rhythm in round four only to be outboxed by Magomedov in the following rounds. Despite Webster being knocked down twice (seventh and tenth) the victory for the Russian wouldn't come by way of knockout but by the judges' scorecards. Magomedov won by unanimous decision 99-89, all three judges.
"I thought I would knock [Derrick] Webster out but I could tell he was prepared. Because of his height, I was surprised by how easy it was to get inside. In the end, I did what I was supposed to do. I did what we prepared to do in the gym - get inside. The ref did a good job of letting us fight on the inside."
During his second appearance on ShoBox, Adam "Mantequilla" Lopez (13-0, 6 KOs) was victorious in his 10-round super bantamweight bout with Dominican Republic-native Eliezer "Campeoncito" Aquino (17-1-1, 11 KOs).
This may have been Aquino's first fight in the United States, but he showed that he was a true competitor. Aquino chose a relentless approach by unloading punch after punch, while Lopez was able to strategize and take smarter shots. Typically, Lopez has been able to finish off his opponents in the sixth round, but tonight the two went the distance.
Aquino was relentless initially, hitting Lopez nonstop. It was clear that Lopez was frustrated, but he wouldn't let Aquino dominate for long.
Lopez won by majority decision, 95-95 and 96-93 twice.
Opening the card Samuel "The Main Event" Clarkson (15-3, 9 KOs) of Dallas, Texas delivered a huge upset by knocking down Jerry "The King's Son" Odom (13-2, 1 NC, 12 KOs) of Washington, D.C. three times before the referee, Shawn Clark, stopped the fight at 1:15 of the third round.