By John DiSanto – PhillyBoxingHistory.com

Rising prospect Shinard Bunch beat Philadelphia veteran Hank Lundy in the ten-round main event at the Newtown Athletic Club in Bucks County, PA Friday night. The junior welterweight fight, expected to be an effortless passing of the torch from an old pro to a budding contender, turned out to be tougher and more exciting than originally presumed. The fight lasted the full distance and offered a few surprises along the way. In the end, youth won out, but the aging Lundy reminded the next generation what Philly grit and Hammerin’ Hank are all about. The bout topped an entertaining nine-fight show promoted by Nedal Promotions.

Bunch-Lundy began on script, with a threat that the fight might end almost immediately. In the very first round, Bunch blasted Lundy with a neat left hook that sent the fading star to the canvas. The punch buckled Hank at the waist and knees just before he crumbled to the mat. Lundy looked hurt and the way he fell suggested he might not get up. Of course, the always-game Lundy did rise, but you couldn’t help but think it was going to be an early night. `

Bunch continued his attack in the second and was having the better of most of the action. By the third, Lundy appeared to be puffing and a slight swelling began to form a ridge along his left eyebrow. Still, Lundy was competitive. He looked in good shape fighting from his familiar wide-footed stance. He slipped and ducked in every direction and fired back with a disregard for danger that has made him one of the most fun fighters to watch over the past several years. The difference on this night, however, was Lundy’s timing. Slightly off due to age and mileage, Lundy missed many of his counter shots and got caught by more incoming punches than a vintage Lundy would have allowed. Still, he was providing Bunch with a solid test.

For his part, Bunch was workmanlike. He jabbed his way in and repeatedly bulled Lundy to the ropes. There he let his hands go and nailed Lundy to the head and body. Bunch was building a lead and appeared to be setting the veteran up for a big finish. Bunch landed often. Lundy absorbed the punches and while under fire appeared to calculate a new strategy.

After Bunch landed, there would be a short gap in the action while he reloaded his guns for more punishment. During most of these little gaps, Lundy would briefly gather himself and then fire back with everything he had. Many of these return punches sailed over a ducking Bunch. But occasionally, Lundy landed. Bunch was stronger, faster, and most importantly, fresher. However, Lundy, not generally known as a puncher, was clearly going for the knockout. The adjustment made the fight entertaining and added a hint of possibility for the underdog.

After the fourth round, Lundy was breathing heavily in his corner. However, during the fifth, it was Bunch who took a rest. This slow-down by Shinard allowed Lundy to have his best round thus far. His jab landed frequently, and he mixed in a few power shots along the way. Lundy edged this round on my scorecard, a first in the fight.

Bunch resumed control in the sixth, but Lundy kept swinging for the fences with his wild counterpunches. Given his recent career fade – he’d lost his last three and five of his last seven – Lundy must have known deep down that his days as a boxer were coming to a close. But the beauty of Hank Lundy has always been his unwavering swagger and insistent confidence. Despite the well-earned cracks in his armor, Lundy summoned his exquisite arrogance with each homerun swing he took. It was poignant to watch him repeatedly try to turn back the clock with a single punch. But this tactic only seemed to be a “Hail Mary” that likely would never pay off. But then the eighth round came.

In round eight, the pattern of the fight was steady. Bunch was in control and landing well. At this point, his punches had produced two ridges of swelling, each extending Lundy’s brows like mini awnings. Bunch was winning the fight and the only question left was if Lundy could extend him to the final bell. However, as the eighth round was winding down, one of Lundy’s homerun shots landed. He came off the ropes and clobbered Bunch with a left hook. Lundy doubled up on the punch and his second hook sent a buckled Bunch crumbling to the canvas. Bunch went down hard and appeared hurt. He gathered himself quickly and rose on unsteady legs. Suddenly the fight had taken a turn and the old pro was on the brink of an upset. However, when Bunch got to his feet, the bell clanged, and Lundy’s window closed.

In round nine, Bunch seemed fully recovered as he resumed his work. Lundy still presented a threat, but Bunch was back in control. The fight in the ring was paused for a time while a fight outside the ring teetered on a riot. Eventually the fight we came to see restarted and continued to the final bell.

When it was over, there was little question about who had won the decision. Bunch passed his test, learned plenty, and clearly earned the victory. Lundy made his own statement about who he once was and displayed how that excellent fighter will always be a part of him.

The official judges all favored Bunch in their tallies. Tony Lundy scored the fight 98-90, Dewey LaRosa saw it 97-91, and Adam Friscia had it 95-93. My score was also 97-91, or 8-2 in rounds with two knockdowns figured in. The referee was Eric Dali.

Shinard Bunch, Trenton, NJ, improved to 20-1-1, with 16 KOs and 1 No Contest, and took another step toward a big fight. Lundy slipped to 31-12-1, with 14 KOs, and did well enough to probably dissuade him from retiring from the ring. In my opinion, there could be no better stopping point for his memorable career. I’d like to see Hank go out with his swagger intact.

BUTT WINS IN ONE

In the co-feature bout, West Philadelphian Daiyann Butt scored a quick TKO over Brooklyn’s Raekwon Butler in a scheduled six-round junior welterweight fight. In the first minute of the bout, Butt landed a hard right hand that staggered Butler badly. His body wavered and Butt jumped right on him. After he landed a few more blows, referee David Braslow jumped in to stop the fight. Butler protested, but the fight was over at the 56 second mark. Butt won his third straight and raised his record to 12-2, 4 KOs. Butler fell to 5-4, 3 KOs. It was the second time he was stopped.

GANTT WINS BY TKO

In a four-round featherweight fight, Camden southpaw Devin Gantt stopped fellow-lefty Enrique Uvalle in the final round. Gantt won the first three rounds before flooring Uvalle with a left hand in the fourth. Uvalle popped up, but Gantt met him with more pressure and hurtful blows. After a right-left combination buckled the Iowa-based Texan, referee Eric Dali stepped in to stop the fight. The time was 54 seconds of round four. Gantt won his second bout by knockout (2-0, 2 KOs), while Uvalle lost for the second time (1-2).

DAVILA SHUTS OUT PACHECO

South Jersey junior welterweight Juan Davila stretched his young record to 2-0 with a unanimous points win over Texan Tyler Pacheco. Davila knocked Pacheco down in round two with an accumulation of punches and went on to win every round of the fight. It was a good battle along the ropes throughout the four rounds, but Davila consistently scored more frequently with the heavier blows. Southpaw Pacheco was hurt a number of times but toughed it out until the final bell. All three judges, Adam Friscia, Tony Lundy, and Justin Rubenstein scored the fight a 40-35 shutout for Davila. My score was the same. Pacheco’s record dropped to 1-3. The referee was David Braslow.

LEONARDO BLANKS GUZMAN

John Leonardo of Englishtown, NJ won his four-round junior featherweight contest against Jesus Arturo Guzman by unanimous decision. Guzman, who had been previously knocked out five times in his career, was durable against Leonardo, only wobbling once on this evening. That moment came at the end for round two when Leonardo landed a right-left-right combination that hurt Guzman just before the bell sounded. Other than that, Guzman was steady, but Leonardo won every minute of every round. The judges agreed and all turned in scores of 40-36 in favor of Leonardo. The judges were Adam Friscia, Tony Lundy, and Dewey LaRosa. The referee was Eric Dali. Leonardo improved to 9-1-1, 4 KOs while Guzman slid to 8-10, 5 KOs.

BOOKER SHOCKS NEELY

In a scheduled six-round heavyweight fight, Patterson’s Norman Neely brought a pretty 13-0 record into the ring against Detroit veteran Rydell Booker, who had lost seven times in his previous thirty-four starts. However, if Team Neely thought those seven losses indicated an easy win for the streaking young pro, they were sorely mistaken. Less than one minute into the bout, Booker crashed a pair of hard right hands against Neely’s chin, and the betting favorite went down. As referee David Braslow counted, Neely looked ready to go on, but after rising to his feet, he suddenly and inexplicably knelt back down on the canvas. Seeing this, Braslow immediately waved the fight over. Neely rose again and appeared angry with the stoppage but when he wobbled toward the ref, it was clear that he was still quite dazed. The time of the stoppage was 43 seconds of the first round. The upset victory improved Booker’s record to 27-7-1, 14 KOs. Neely suffered his first defeat (13-1, 8 KOs).

MARKASHEVIQ WINS WILD BOUT

Staten Island super middleweight Arben Markasheviq stopped Cincinnati’s Turner Williams in the first round. However, this fight was a wild affair that appeared to be going in a very different direction before the sudden stoppage. The fight started with the muscular Markasheviq dropping Williams with a left to the body. The lanky southpaw managed to get up and then did his best to stay away from his charging foe. Williams’ poorly schooled, wild style looked desperate and unprofessional. Everyone watching braced themselves for his soon-to-come demise. However, Williams suddenly struck Markasheviq with his right hand and “The Wolf” fell hard to the canvas. The turn of events was a shock to everyone, probably even Williams. As referee Eric Dali counted, it did not look like Markasheviq would get up in time. However, as Dali counted “ten,” the fallen fighter popped up. Dali paused for a moment and decided he had beaten the count and allowed the fight to continue. Not one to let the opportunity pass, Williams charged at the still-shaken Markasheviq and threw the wildest haymaker you’ve ever seen. However, the punch missed its mark and Williams immediately grabbed his left shoulder and crumbled to the canvas in pain. With Williams on his knees signaling that he was injured, Dali stopped the fight and awarded the win to Markasheviq by TKO at 2:07 of the first round. What a crazy fight! The winner improved to 1-0-1, 1 KO. Williams fell to 4-15, 3 KOs, and left with his arm in a gauze-fashioned sling. All fifteen of Williams’ losses came by knockout. Although another KO loss was probably the expected outcome by all, the way the result played out was a shocker. Sometimes a journeyman just can’t catch a break.

ROSARIO TOPS HERNANDEZ

South Jersey junior lightweight Carlos Rosario used a consistent body attack along with a steady stream of right-hand power shots to win a four-round unanimous decision over Pedro Hernandez of Colorado. Rosario produced most of the action, although southpaw Hernandez landed here and there with his left. More than once, Rosario’s body work bent Hernandez in half and the assault carried Rosario to a shutout victory (40-36) by all three judges, Tony Lundy, Justin Rubenstein, and Adam Friscia. Rosario improved to 8-3, 4 KOs; Hernandez slid to 4-14-1, 2 KOs. The referee was David Braslow.

WILLIAMS STOPS EVANS

In the opening bout of the evening, New Yorker DeyShawn Williams defeated Texan Ricky Evans by TKO in round three of their four-round welterweight fight. Evans started fast, landing two solid left hooks in the first. A clash of heads sent him to the canvas, but referee Eric Dali ruled “no knockdown” to preserve Evans’ lead. Williams started catching up by the end of the round, but Evans had already banked it. In the second, Williams took control, landing power shots to the head and body. Evans remained in the fight and there was some good, two-way action. Williams won the session to even the score. Finally in the third round, Williams drilled Evans with a hard left hook to the body that sent Evans down. He made it to his feet in time, but referee Eric Dali stopped the contest. The time was 1:24 of round three. The win extended Williams’ winning streak to 2-0, 2 KOs, while Evans remained winless at 0-3.

A crowd of about 1,100 attended the fight.

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