By Brad Snyder, The Undercard
Photos: Bob Ryder

Heavyweight Jermaine Franklin (17-0, 13 KOs) showcased speed and athleticism defeating tough opponent Craig Lewis (14-3, 8 KOs) by UD (98-92, 98-92, 99-91) on Friday night at Detroit’s Motor City Casino.

There is plenty to like about Franklin. He’s a nice guy away from the ring. Then there are things to love about Franklin. He has speed for the division. But the big question is size. I asked Mike Acri about that very thing after the fight.

“His handspeed is as good as any heavyweight in the business. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. His power will develop as he throws more shots, getting seasoned and gaining experience. It’s about putting the salt and pepper and garlic on it before. He is in the process.”

The heavyweight bout matched two former National Golden Glove champions. Lewis, who looked more aggressive than he had in the past, kept coming. But it was Franklin‘s ring commanding presence that controlled the fight.

I asked Franklin and Acri to rate Franklin‘s performance. Both agreed, it was 7 out of 10. The question will be: Can 6’2, 227lb Franklin survive in a heavyweight division that features skyscrapers as champions? Friday night’s performance, although just a chapter, will be part of that book the answers that great question.

Promoter Carlos Llinas and Motor City Casino Soundboard presented a quality boxing show that featured a ton of intriguing matchups.

The co-main event had middleweight Dorell Van Horn (10-1, 6 KOs) pulling off a SD (96-94-Van Horn, 96-94-Harris, 96-94-Van Horn) victory over Winfred Harris (17-1, 9 KOs). Harris, who is only 22, still has a bright future in the sport. Van Horn, now, will be looking to be on promoters’ radars.

Frank Martin (6-0, 5 KOs) won his jr. welterweight contest vs Jermon Houck (1-1) with a 2:24 TKO victory in the 2nd Round.

Taylor Duerr (8-0-1, 6 KOs) won an exciting light heavyweight match with a UD (59-54, 59-54, 60-53) while fighting with a broken right hand. Duerr was tested with a good fighter in Rocky Smith (13-7, 11 KOs). Duerr looked better than he has in previous bouts.

Heavyweight Rydell Booker (25-1, 12 KOs) defeats Domonic Jenkins (15-12, 7 KOs) by UD (58-56, 58-56, 59-55). Booker, now back in boxing, has been putting up some exciting fights for Promoter Llinas.

Fight of the night went to light heavyweight Anthony Barnes (11-0, 8 KOs) and Dwayne Williams (6-9, 3 KOs). Williams, who has faced numerous undefeated fighters, brought heart and spirit to the six round contest. The fight had the Soundboard fan’s complete attention and produced the most talked about decision of the night. Barnes scored the UD victory (57-56, 59-54, 58-55) even with losing a point to a foul earlier in the fight.

Middleweight Darryl Cunningham (39-9, 16 KOs) continued to improve in his extensive career. The last few fights have had Cunningham looking more impressive. Cunningham scored a 2:14 3rd Round TKO over Daniel Craycraft (15-26-4, 2 KOs).

Middleweight Jared Chauvin (1-2) used precision and timing to overcome early speed obstacles to hand Sinan Fradi (5-1, 3 KOs) his first loss. Chauvin won by MD (38-38, 39-37, 39-37).

The future looks bright for welterweight boxing prospect Cortez Chambliss (4-0, 4 KOs). The 2:00 1st Round TKO over Timotheus Coneal (0-3) keeps hype around Chambliss alive and well.

Heavyweight Paolo Parente (2-0, 1 KO) won by MD (38-38, 39-37, 39-37) over Charles Brown (2-1, 2 KOs). Parente showed a lot of power and improved as the fight went on.

Night of Knockouts XIII was promoted by CLIP International Promotions with Carlos Llinas.