Weekend Preview: Jimmy Lange Returns in NoVa
by Gautham Nagesh
The cancellation of Berto-Ortiz II leaves this weekend without a marquee fight in the U.S., but DMV fight fans will be treated to another card at George Mason University’s Patriot Center on Saturday night, headlined by local favorite Jimmy Lange.
The former Contender star has consistently drawn 5,000 fans in recent years, making Northern Virginia an unexpected hotbed of the sport despite the absence of any world-class talents. Lange has been importing opponents from Indiana lately, which is never a great sign. But regardless of the opposition, Jimmy always comes to fight.
His bouts consistently feature tremendous action, both give and take, which is why his fans are almost always repeat customers. If you’re a regular person looking for a night at the fights, you could do far worse, but not much better. I’ll be ringside to bring you all the action, with Trey Pollard in tow to capture the action.
Now 36 years old, with a solid record of 37-4-2 (25 KOs), Lange may never feature on premium cable. Regardless, he is the epitome of the fight game. Scribes love lamenting the lack of a middle class in boxing, but Jimmy Lange’s regular outings at the Patriot Center keep much of the NoVa fight scene in business. His outings have afforded several local fighters the opportunity to build their reputations among local fans. Unfortunately, boxing politics have prevented many of the area’s more promising youngsters from taking advantage of the platform.
Saturday’s bout against Ruben Galvan is ostensibly for the WBU junior middleweight trinket, but in reality Galvan is here to get beat. He’s winless in his last 13 outings and hasn’t tasted victory since 2006. Jimmy’s style means Galvan will get some licks in, but count on Lange to win by knockout in the late rounds.
When we last spoke, Lange was still looking for one last shot at the big time. This is obviously not it, but Lange’s fan base is big enough to merit at least a decent crossroads fight on ESPN or NBC. I wouldn’t mind seeing Main Events pair him with Joel Julio on the undercard of one of their shows for the peacock network. Glen “Jersey Boy” Tapia is another good young opponent that could make for a fan-friendly TV fight.
The co-main even will feature former junior welterweight contender Mike Stewart taking on Richmond’s Joe Wyatt in a ten-round bout for the WBU welterweight trinket. Stewart’s 47-7-3 record (25 KOs) includes losses to Ricky Hatton and Shamba Mitchell in world title eliminators; he also lost to Grady Brewer on The Contender. Wyatt rang up 23 straight wins to start his career, before getting stopped in his last two fights. He hasn’t fought since losing a thriller to Lange in November 2010. This promises to be an excellent fight, so long as both come prepared.
On the undercard, local middleweight Tori Nelson (5-0-1), will challenge Vashon “Lady V” Living (5-2, 1 KO) of Houston for the vacant Women’s International Boxing Association (WIBA) middleweight championship in a ten-round bout. A single mom who works three jobs as a school bus driver, high school cafeteria worker, and IHOP waitress, Nelson won the WBC middleweight championship last summer by upsetting Lorissa Rivas. She beat Michelle Garland in her Patriot Center debut last September.
The rest of the undercard features unbeaten local junior welterweight Todd “White Lightning” Wilson against Fernando Basora in a six-round bout and Pennsylvania junior middleweight Harry Joe Yorgey, whose lone loss came to Alfredo Angulo in 2009. Yorgey was supposed to fight friend of the blog Zain Shah, but Shah pulled out due to the flu. He will be replaced by fellow LA Boxing trainer Lawrence Jones.
ESPN’s Friday Night Fights features 2008 Olympian Demetrius Andrade against Angel Hernandez from Mohegan Sun in Connecticut in a 154-lb fight. A former world title challenger, Hernandez is a late replacement for Dereck Ennis, who withdrew with the flu. Hernandez is game but shopworn; he’s lost his last three fights. The only suspense is whether the fight will go the distance.
Andrade is probably the most promising East Coast prospect aside from Gary Russell Jr., but his style leaves a lot to be desired aesthetically. He jabbed his way to victory against Grady Brewer last August in his toughest bout to date and knocked out Saul Duran a month later. Better competition seems warranted at this point.
Undefeated junior welterweight prospect Raymond “Tito” Serrano (17-0, 8 KOs), faces former New York State champion Kenny Abril (11-4-1, 6 KOs) in the 10-round co-feature.
Telemundo has a show Friday night from Palm Bay, Fla. headlined by Orlando Cruz vs. Alejandro Delgado at featherweight. Unbeaten Cuban heavyweight Luis Ortiz takes on Epifanio Mendoza in a ten-round bout on the undercard.
Also on Friday: Argentine puncher Lucas Matthysse returns home to fight Ivan Valle at junior welterweight….promising lightweight Kevin Mitchell fights Felix Lora in London
Saturday night: Rodrigo Guerrero defends his IBF junior bantamweight strap against Juan Carlos Sanchez in Los Mochis, Mexico…the Prizefighter 140-lb tournament takes place in Wolverhampton. Last time we correctly picked Choi, this time we’re going with Adil Anwar.