Terron Grant Survives Trial By Fire At Ft. Myers
by Gautham Nagesh
ARLINGTON, Va.–A military base is not the ideal place to hold a professional boxing show. Especially when the venue on said base is difficult to locate, and there are no signs pointing the way. Then again, there was barely any indication that RBA Promotions was holding a boxing card on October 6th at Henderson Hall on Ft. Myers Joint Military Base, unless you happen to be deep in the DMV fight game. Fortunately, taking you deep is exactly what we do.
Still, between the car search and the lack of signs, we arrived at the venue more than 30 minutes after the scheduled start. That meant we were also well into the second bout, featuring junior welterweight prospect and Stiff Jab favorite Terron “The Kid” Grant. I was surprised upon taking my seat at ringside to see Grant locked in what looked like a life-and-death struggle against the tough Stephan Alexander of Norfolk, Va.
Grant is a local kid with promise, but until now has been largely untested. Despite a record of 4-4 (4 KOs) entering the fight, Alexander more than provided that test. My colleagues Gary “Digital” Williams and Matt Walters informed me referee Steve Smoger had scored a knockdown against Grant in the first, though both were convinced it had been a slip. Smoger stuck to his guns despite some ribbing from the cheap seats, but for Grant the deficit was no laughing matter.
Alexander’s record may have been unimpressive, but there was nothing to criticize about his effort. The southpaw’s handlers have done him no favors, with five out of his last six fights coming against undefeated or once-beaten opponents. He has been stopped only once and looked ready to go 12 against Grant, who struggled in the face of his first real opposition. Somehow Terron found the spirit to pick up the pace and out-work Alexander in the final two rounds, but there were no guarantees after the final bell.
Grant no doubt let out a huge sigh of relief when the judges announced scores of 38-37, 39-37, and 37-39, resulting in a split decision in his favor. Catcalls from the crowd indicated Terron might have gotten the benefit of the doubt from the local judges, but it’s difficult for me to say, having not seen the entire fight. My trainer Rodriguez was in the house and believed Alexander should have won, while Terron appeared to land the cleaner shots during the rounds I witnessed.
Regardless, Grant moves forward at 4-0 (2 KOs) having learned some valuable lessons that should serve him well in the future. Unfortunately, his Team Mitchell compatriot Jerry “Slug” Forrest wasn’t so lucky with his selection of an opponent. The promising young heavyweight from Newport News, Va. was all gloved up and ready to pound opponent Wayne Hampton, before Hampton inexplicably disappeared right before the opening bell. I spoke briefly to a mystified Forrest and his manager Sharif Salim, who were understandably put out by the no-show. Forrest still treated fans to his trademark backflip in the ring upon request from announcer Henry “Discombobulating” Jones.
No-shows were a theme of this card promoted by Dr. Richard Ashby, though to his credit, the crowd at the venue was much healthier than we were expecting. A relatively full house of roughly 200-300 people sat on wooden bleachers and at ringside tables, noshing on BBQ and enjoying an abbreviated night at the fights. Junior welterweight Joseph Rector made short work of fellow debutante Samson Townes before our arrival, stopping him at 1:03 of round one. But local prospects Greg Newby and Zakki Scott were both scratched from the card when their fights fell through.
After a prolonged intermission, fans were finally treated to another junior welterweight bout matching Haymarket, Va.’s Juan “The Savior” Rodriguez against Damon Antoine of Akron, Ohio. Rodriguez entered having lost his last two fights, but Antoine and his record of 10-40 turned out to be the perfect tonic. Rodriguez took command from the start, roughing Antoine up early and hurting him badly with a left hook in round one. Another flurry forced Antoine’s glove to the mat and resulted in a count from referee Steve Smoger (above).
Antoine is the definition of a tomato can, having won just once in his previous 16 bouts. The 39-year-old is clearly not in boxing for the glamor; more than likely, it is the best means he has to earn a living. And boy does he earn that living. He took hard shots for four rounds, wearing Townes’ borrowed trunks and without any shot at victory. Still, Antoine fought hard until the final bell, which puts him in the slim category of people that actually attempt to do their job to the best of their abilities. Three scorecards of 40-35 for Rodriguez seemed almost beside the point.
The night’s main event came early, but seemed to last forever as heavyweights Duane Mobley and Dennis Benson met in a six-round rematch of Mobley’s pro debut. Neither man looks like a world-beater, but their skills are also much closer than their divergent records of 5-0 (4 KOs) and 1-3 (1 KO) entering the fight. Mobley looked like the unbeaten fighter early, showing greater composure and balance inside the ring. His demeanor was relaxed and his left hook to the body appeared to do real damage to Benson, who struggled to get on track.
The second round was more of the same and Mobley appeared to have Benson on the verge of going down in the third. Benson held on for dear life, and his corner went so far as to raise the towel while poised on the ring mat. But Dennis eventually gathered his wits and began firing back near the end of the round. The following two rounds saw plenty of holding, as the fight turned ugly and our attention at ringside wandered. Benson did attempt to work with more frequency, leading Rodriguez to declare that he had won the fight. But from where I sat, Mobley clearly looked the better man.
Mobley proved as much in the 6th, once again battering Benson to the point of submission, but failing to send him over the edge. The final bell for the bout rang what appeared to be 5 seconds early, a merciful if brief amount of time that might have saved Benson. The judges were closer to me than Rodriguez, scoring the fight 59-55 (twice) and 58-56 for Mobley. It was a fair result for an ugly fight, one that needn’t have been held twice to begin with. I suggested to my neighbors that Forrest could probably beat both Benson and Mobley, and should consider taking them on in succession. At least they’ll show up to fight.
