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Boxing card at Carver
A fight card was held at Schenectady's Carver Community Center Saturday night featuring a box-off between young fighters from the Adirondack region and the Niagara Falls region. Winners advanced to Lake Placid for the Northeast Regional Championship. Gazette news columnist Carl Strock was on hand to take these photos. Posted on December 13, 2010.
In the 132-pound class, Abraham Nova of Albany, left, fought an aggressive fight but lost a decision to Lavisas Williams of Rochester.
In the super-heavyweight division, Trevor Bryan of Schenectady, left, won a decision over Lamont Johnson of Buffalo. There being no upper limit for super-heavyweights, who start off at 201 pounds, we don’t know exactly what they weighed, but Bryan told me a couple days before the fight that he weighed in the 260s, and he looked all of that, with at least 30 pounds of it being surplussage. His opponent appeared about the same, so there was a lot of beef in the ring. Bryan has his eye on the 2012 Olympics, and I wish him well, though I believe he’ll improve his chances if he manages to buff up.
I have mixed feelings about children boxing -- mixed mostly on the queasy and uncomfortable side – but leave that for another time. These two 8-year-olds acquitted themselves honorably, Alejandro Christopher of Schenectady, left, and Dean McLean of Rochester, right, with referee Mike Rivest keeping a close eye on the proceedings. Young Christopher prevailed.
Alejandro Christopher of Schenectady, facing viewers, slugged it out with Dean McLean of Rochester in the 65-pound class.
Amir Imam, right, of Albany gave the star performance of the night against a bigger Luis Vargas of Syracuse. The kid has more angles than Aristotle, and speed and power to boot.
In the 152-pound class, Mark LaRock of Cohoes, right, sticks a jab at Brandon Smith of Hudson enroute to victory.
In the 145-pound class, Zachariah Ramsey of Connecticut, left, carried his hands low, as if to say to his opponent, Jason Ruggiro of Schenectady, “See? I’m so fast you can’t hit me even with my guard down.” This practice was begun by Mohammed Ali and has been imitated by a many a lesser light since then. Ramsey succeeded with it, though as a heavy puncher he probably would have succeeded as well without it. Also on the card Saturday night, Wilmont Wood of Rochester defeated Mike Rycraft of Utica in the 165-pound class, bloodying Rycraft in the first round and forcing a stoppage. And in the 170-pound class, Brandon Fagan of Syracuse defeated Ben Wright of Schenectady, Wright retiring at the end of the second round after taking two standing 8-counts.
