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Fight Report – February 5^th 2010 at First Avenue in Minneapolis

“Fights Won and Fights to Come”

By: Laura Zink

Andy "Kaos" Kolle, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

At First Avenue Night Club in Minneapolis last night, a capacity crowd filled the club not for rocking, but for socking in the venue’s first ever professional boxing card. Like the venue, which seemed a promising new location for fights, the fights themselves inaugurated this new venture with fights won and the promise of bigger fights to come.

Pat “the Cat” Coleman took a beating from Andy “Kaos” Kolle in the main event of the evening. Though Coleman played the part well in his pre fight antics, telling the crowd with a big smile that they are going to see how “Damn, he cold! You watch!”, when the bell rang he was all about defense. Round after round Kolle had to try to break through the guard of Coleman who kept his forearms cradled around his head almost the entire bout. Kolle tried straight shots to break through the middle, hooks to the body to bring the arms down, and hooks to the head to work around it, but the guard, for the most part, stayed up and prevented any serious power shots from getting through.

Kolle landing on Coleman, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

In round three, however, Kolle found a brief opening during a mid-round lull to land 2 straights and a left which sent Coleman back a bit, wobbling as he stepped backward into the center of the ring with his arms down. Similarly in round four, Kolle landed another sizable left which caused Coleman to fold over forward, resulting in a tangle which made him slip onto his hands and knees. As he lifted himself up, he made protests to ref Nelson from a bloody mouth full of red teeth. By the end of the round the doc was in Coleman’s corner checking his left eye which, similarly, had its white completely infused with blood as well. It was clear that Coleman’s sight was in serious jeopardy. Still, Coleman continued on into round five, but he suffered more of the same, Kolle working in more combos to the head, which again, made Coleman wobble mid-round. Yet, Coleman did not go down for good until he returned to his corner after round five. With ring doc again standing over him and examining his eye, he told ref Nelson that he could not continue due to a lack of sight. Just as the bikinied ring card girl made her final turn around the ring to announce round six, the fight was called and Andy Kolle stood on the corner ropes the victor.

“Yeah, he had good defense,” Andy told the ring announcer after the fight, “He got in that shell all night so it was hard to land good shots….He knew how to protect himself and stay alive.”

“And from what I understand,” the ring announcer returned, “The fight is now signed, sealed and delivered, it’s a rematch coming up in the spring. You will be fighting Matt “The Predator” Vanda.”

“I look forward to fighting Matt,” Kolle said and pointed a finger out into the crowd. “I see Matt over there. He’s a good guy. I love that guy. It was a tough fight. It’s a fight that the fans want to see, and I just want to give the fans what they want.”

“My guess is that you are expecting the same tough rugged fight that you had the last time,” the announcer continued. “Would you approach this fight any differently? I am sure that you have changed as a fighter, and so has Matt.”

“I am a lot smarter now,” Kolle responded. “Back then, that was early in my career. I went to war with him, and I shouldn’t have done that. But I fought his fight. And this time, we are going to come with something different…and it is going to be my fight.”

The co-main event of the evening had a similar ring as the main event - the principal fighter looking forward to the bouts to come. The manifestation of the fight, however, was markedly different than the main event. Where Kolle had to work though getting past a surviving fighter’s defense, Javonte Starks got to practice his defense against an ever-coming, ever-throwing Alex Gonzalez.

Starks started the bout with 2 jabs which ignited an explosion of punches from Gonzalez. Gonzalez attempted to use the barrage as a way to move Starks from one end of the ropes to another. But Starks, cool and collected in the pressure, used the flurries as an opportunity to show his catching skills, shifting and moving through one shot to the next and making almost none of Gonzalez’s shots land cleanly. After the barrage, Gonzalez was clearly gassed, so Starks took the reins. Walking Gonzalez down, Starks landed one head shot which bent Gonzalez over, another shot which punched Gonzalez down more, and 3 more which made Gonzalez kiss canvas and caused the ref wave off the fight in 2 minutes and 51 seconds of the first round.

“I was practicing my defense,” Starks told the announcer after the fight, “catching punches. I wanted to please the fans a little bit so I let it go a little longer than it should have.”

Starks then took a moment to remind fans that the more fights he has, the better the competition will be in the future.

In the prelims, Jeremy McLaurin faced a seriously tough fight with Hector Orozco. From the millisecond the bell rung, Orozco exploded into a barrage of head shots. McLaurin, looking somewhat surprised, moved back and tried to get some distance and range so that he could start landing. It didn’t happen. Orozco, sensing that his pressure tactics were overwhelming any opportunity for McLaurin to throw, kept up the pace the entire round, barreling in with looping shots and, once in, closing the distance by stuffing his head into McLaurin’s chest and hitting the body until they tangled and had to be separated by the ref.

McLaurin landing a big body blow, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

By round two, cries could be heard from ringside screaming at McLaurin to “JAB!! JAB!!! JAB JEREMY!!” But the well-wishers admonitions could not turn the tide as Orozco kept up his stifling pace and made McLaurin work more on moving than finding his usual clean shots. The pressure built more as round three wore on because fans, knowing that this was a four round fight, clearly felt that McLaurin had to pick up the pace in order to gain some leverage with the judges. And while round three was much closer that the previous two, clearly something spectacular needed to happen if McLaurin were to win the fight.

This spectacle happened in round three with a terrible right hand from McLaurin. The punch sliced into Orozco’s eye and opened a gash right under his eyebrow. The cut began to open more and bleed, bleed, bleed into his eye as it began to swell shut toward the end of the final round. Ref Nelson called Orozco over to the doctor for an examination. As the doc’s face became more concerned and his questions became more intent, Orozco began to plead with the doctor to let him continue…but alas for Orozco, the fight was called in1 minute and 41 seconds into the 4^th round due to the injury, making McLaurin the winner.

“I’ll keep fighting,” Orozco told me outside the venue after the fight, “You are going to see me again.”

And in previous bouts, it seems that there are other things that boxing fans will get to see again. After knocking out William Bellcourt in a mere 1 minute and 55 seconds of the first round, Antwan “Lil Superman” Robertson agreed to a rematch with “Bad” Brad Patraw.

As Robertson was about to make his exit, Patraw hopped up into the ring. As the crowd booed, Patraw took the mic and, with a smile on his face, looked at Robertson and said, “All I gotta say is I’m looking for my rematch.”

Antwan Robertson, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Playful in spirit, Robertson stomped his foot hard on the canvas in a theatric of mock shock.

“You got it!” Robertson said, “You gave me a shot. You beat me, and I beat you. Let’s do it!”

Both fighters smiled and exited the ring as the crowd cheered the idea of a rubber match between two fighters who collided both in the amateurs and now what will be the third time in the pros.

And finally, in the kick off of the evening, the crowd was treated to a double-header of quick knockouts. After slamming into Andrew Kato and causing him to flop over head first on third rope in round one, Don Tierney knocked out Kato in 21 seconds of the second round. And for the first bout of the evening Jose Hilario got a lightning fast KO victory over Joe Negron in a mere 41 seconds of round 1.

Photos by SnapLocally.com, click here to see more combat photography

Kolle (left) and Vanda, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

The Midwest Sports Council, RDS Company, and First Avenue Nightclub put on a fun night of fights. The place was packed with vocal fans. Although it turned out to be a short night of fights due to stoppages, it only seemed to add to the excitement among screaming fans. There were two announcements made regarding Minnesota state champions defending their titles. “Bad” Brad Patraw entered the ring after Antwan “Little Superman” Robertson won his fight and challenged him to a rematch for the state belt. After Andy “Kaos” Kolle won his fight they announce April 2 will bring on Kolle/Vanda 2. Aside from all of the big knock-downs, announcements and KO’s, the fight of the night belonged to Jeremy McLaurin and Hector Orozco. Below is a quick run-down of last night’s events. Laura Zink will also have a report later today.

Jose Hilario over Joe Negron (KO 41 seconds into the first round) - Hilario attacked and KOed Negron with a huge left hook. KO of the night.

Don Tierney punches Kato through ropes, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Don Tierney over Andrew Kato (TKO 21 seconds into the second round) - Tierney was the slicker and faster fighter. While Kato was throwing and for the most part missing with big shots, Tierney was moving and landing shots of his own, putting Kato on the mat two times in the first round. The second round started with a mad rush by Tierney that did not subside until the fight was stopped 21 seconds into the second round.

Antwan Robertson, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Antwan Robertson over William Bellcourt (TKO at 1:55 of the first round) - Robertson was just too fast with his jab and movement for Bellcourt. Superman landed hard clean shots at will until the fight was stopped.

McLaurin (left) and Orozco, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Jeremy McLaurin over Hector Orozco (Dr stopped the fight at 1:41 of the fourth and final round due to cut above Orozco’s eye caused by a right hand.) - This was the fight of the night. It reminded me a little of Eyer/Cortez. Orozco brought the pressure and big shots for much of the fight. Most observers had Orozco up by two rounds going into the third. McLaurin seemed to come alive in the third round using his length and superior boxing skills but Orozco was still able to land his shots and muscle McLaurin around a bit, very close round. The fourth round looked a lot like the third with McLaurin probably winning it up until a right hand from McLaurin caused a cut above Hectors left eye that the Dr deemed too serious to allow the fight to go on. Nice come-back win for McLaurin and a very tough break for Orozco.

Javontae Starks, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Javontae Starks over Alex Gonzalez (TKO at 2:51 of the first round) - The fight began with Gonzalez in his pro debut firing nonstop for most of the first half of the round. Though he was firing, little was hitting the always calm, cool, and collected Starks. When he wanted to, Starks opened his guard and landed monster punches whenever he desired. My last note before the stoppage was that it looked almost as though Starks was toying with Gonzalez until the ref stepped in and stopped things.

Andy Kolle (left), Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Andy “Kaos” Kolle over Pat Coleman (Coleman quit after the fifth round claiming he could not see) - This fight in a nut shell was Kolle throwing and Coleman standing in his guard. As the fight progressed Kolle began to get clean shots through Colemans guard by nailing the body and moving upstairs. All rounds showed Kolle throwing shots at Coleman as he back him through all portions of the ring. Although Kolle had him wobbled on a few occasions, Coleman only hit the mat in the fourth. The end of the fourth and through the 5th was Kolle throwing 1 2, 1 2, 1 2, and following up with 5 and 6 punch combos. It was clear after the fourth round that Coleman was beginning to have trouble seeing as the constant slam of Kolle’s lefts and rights were beginning to blind him. After the fifth round was over Coleman told his corner he could not see and the fight was stopped. This leads us to what may become the event of 2010, Andy Kolle vs Matt Vanda, April 2.

Matt Vanda/Andy Kolle Courtesy Walters Photography, all rights reserved

This coming Friday, February 5, brings the return of Kaos for his first fight since last June. Pat Coleman (29,15) is set to be the man opposite of Kolle (19,2). From all indications this should be a tune-up fight for bigger things in the upcoming months. It is not so secret that a showdown between Kolle and Vanda seems to be in the works for as soon as this coming March. Though Vanda lost convincingly this past Friday there are no signs that it has changed any plans. The fact of the matter is that Vanda is still one of the top Middles in Minnesota. Team Kolle may get to choose who they defend their Minnesota title against but from all I have spoken to, nobody is pounding down the door to fight a 6 foot 1 inch south-paw with huge KO’s in his last two fights. This leaves Minnesota fight fans with an opportunity to watch the second installment of Kolle/Vanda and I don’t think you will hear too many  complain about that.

Aside from the return of Andy Kolle, this card is loaded with some of Minnesota’s top young prospects. Jeremy McLaurin (6,0), Javontae Starks (2,0), Jose Hilario (1,0) and Minnesota Champ Antwan Robertson (5,1,1) will all be showcased this Friday at First Ave Nightclub.

For Immediate Release

                Minneapolis, MN- One of Minnesota’s most heralded prospects, and former amateur national champion Javontae Starks(2-0 2 ko’s) is slated to box for the first time in his hometown on February 5 at First Avenue night club when he takes on Matt Ellis (1-1).

                After fighting twice at Grand Casino Hinckley Starks’ third pro bout will be his first in his native Minneapolis.  While his first bout in the Twin Cities is an exciting prospect Starks’ focus in the professionals is to compete at the same level he did in the amateurs, the national and world stage.

“I’m willing to fight the best in Minnesota, but my sights are on the national scene, and putting Minnesota on the boxing map”

                Starks made a name for himself nationally in the amateurs, reaching a number one ranking at welterweight, and competing for team U.S.A. on numerous occasions. Two fights into his anticipated professional career Starks has been explosive, stopping Dan Copp in round two, and Andrew Kato in the first round.

                Starks’ bout will serve as a co-feature to Minnesota middleweight champion Andy Kolle’s return against Pat Coleman. “Friday Night Fights at First Avenue” will be an 18+ event. Tickets are priced 25$, 35$, and 100$ and are available at www.first-avenue.com/event/4478/friday-night-fights-first-avenue

Contact: Brett Mauren (publicist)

      Andy Kolle to Headline February 5 at First Avenue in Minneapolis

For Immediate Release

               Minneapolis, MN-  Minnesota’s middleweight champion is slated to make his return to the ring this February. Andy “Kaos” Kolle(19-2 14 ko’s) will take on Pat “The Cat” Coleman (29-15 20 ko’s) on February 5 at First Avenue in Minneapolis, MN.

Courtesy Walters Photography, all rights reserved

                Kolle is coming off of a highlight reel knockout of Anthony Bonsante in March, and an impressive stoppage of Anthony Shuler in June. Although Kolle has been inactive for six months he insists that February 5^th presents an opportunity to not only get back into action, but turn some heads in the Twin Cities.

“I am really looking forward to getting back into the ring, it has been too long! It has been a few years since I have fought in the Twin Cities so I can’t wait to come and show the boxing fans there what I got. I don’t know much about my opponent but that is nothing new to me so I will be ready for whatever he brings to the table”

                Kolle vs Coleman will be promoted by Midwest Sports Council in association with RDS Company and will bring boxing to the venue made famous by Prince in the mid 80’s. In addition to the anticipated return of Andy Kolle heralded prospect Javontae Starks(2-0 2 ko’s) will do battle for the first time in his native Minneapolis when he takes on Matt Ellis(2-1) in the co-feature. Starks’ MSC stablemate Jeremy McLaurin(6-0 4 ko’s) will also be in action against Brandon Quintana (2-4).

                Decorated amateur Tony Lee(1-0) is slated to fight Javier Segura, while fellow prospect Jose Hilario takes on Hector Orozco. Rounding out the card will be Donny Tierney (1-1) taking on Andrew Kato, and Zach Schumach(1-2-1) taking on Lenny McQuen in his professional debut.

The Event will be 18+ and Tickets are available at www.first-avenue.com

Contact: Brett Mauren (publicist)