Tag Archives: Wilton Hilario

News and Notes from around Minnesota… February 9′s Saint Paul show coming together…

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February 9′s event is coming together nicely, The Main event will feature Raphael Butler (35,12) against Jeremy Williams (45,5,1) in a battle for the WBU heavyweight title! The co feature pits another of Minnesota’s heaviest hitters, Phil Williams (11,5) vs Sujjay El-Amin (12,6) for the WBU super middleweight world title… Plenty of power to close out the show in these two fights…

The undercard features a nice bantamweight Minnesota title fight between Antwan Robertson and Vicente Alfaro… Also on the undercard will be Rob Brant, Wilton Hilario, among others. It also looks like Al Sands will be fighting on this card as well.

The biggest bummer for this card is Hilario vs Muwendo being off, that could have stole the show… Boxing!!!

Minnesota Boxing schedules/bout lists and news….

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News from the last week: Al Sands (6,1) vs TJ Gibson’s (1,4) MN cruiserweight title fight is off, it is unclear at this time when Sands will return to the ring but we assume it will be on his trainer’s and promoters card, when Jungle Boy Boxing has their pro am show Feb 1…… That bad news was turned into even better news, as MinnesotaBoxing.com reported that Ismail Muwendo (11,0) will be facing Wilton Hilario (12,3,1) in a huge showdown on February 9′s card in Saint Paul MN. Talk about making lemons into lemon aide!!

Here is a list of January’s shows and their Boxrec bout lists as they stand today….

Tyler "The Hitman" Hultin (right)

January 5, SEG, Hyatt Regency, Minneapolis, MN….. bout list.

Truax (20,1,1) vs Vanda (44,14)

January 19, Omega Presents, Truax/Vanda, Convention Center, Minneapolis, MN…. bout list.

RJ "T-Rex" Laase (9,1) (left) will face Justin Jones (5,0) on 1-25-13

January 25, RDS Boxing, Kolle/Fort, Hinckley Grand Casino, Hinckley, MN …. bout list. This event was thought to be on Fox Sports North, but it did not work out…

Love Boxing? April, May, June, July, Lots to love!

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NOTES:

Boxing has not been this hot in the upper midwest for years. Tomorrow night brings what Minnesota fight fans have been waiting a long time for, a very winnable and competitive nationally televised fight. Caleb “Golden” Truax (18,0,1) gets his chance to shine in the bright lights against a man in Jermain Taylor who many think is a shadow of his former world class self. Now I don’t know about all of that, Taylor will be tough and he and his team look at this fight as just another step back to where they feel they rightly belong, in talks of title fights…. Most know my pick on this one, but I will save that for tomorrow along with a few last quotes from Truax…. weigh photos and weights from fightnews.com

RJ "T-Rex" Laase (8,1) sport The League T

April 7 in the twin ports brought out close to 1500 fans to see local favorites Andy “Kaos” Kolle (25,3), RJ “T-Rex” Laase (8,1) and T-Rex Promotions debut show. And the beautiful part is, as one of Minnesota’s premier match makers put it, Cory Rapacz, “the show was the best over all show put on in northern MN in years.” From production to action it will be hard to beat that total package.

RDS and Cory Rapacz have a great show of their own scheduled for May 12 at the Hyatt in Minneapolis MN. The Main event is reason enough to get out to this one. Wilton Hilario and Jeremy McLaurin fight it out for super featherweight supremacy. The much talked about and long awaited debut of one of the nation’s best amateur fighters Robert Brant has boxing people buzzing. Most observers seem to think he will translate his immense amateur success into Professional stardom, but one fight at a time, lol… Also fighting will be Aaron “Gorilla” Green (5,0), the bad blood match between “Bad” Brad Patraw (7,4) and Dustin “Bull Dog” Mason (3,0), Donny Drama and Tony Lee in separate bouts…

June could bring up to 3 professional boxing cards to the three state area of MN, WI, and ND. It looks like 2 of the shows will be June 23, one at Black Bear Casino featuring Dave Peterson (13,0) vs Cerresso Fort (12,0,1), also featuring Al Sands (2,1). The other looks to be in the twin cities and possibly having Winston Anderson and RJ Laase fighting. There is yet another rumored card, but that is all I know of it. This is boxing so all you see on June could change by May.

T-Rex Promotions looks to get back in action in July/August as well as a brand new promoter. Good times indeed….

 

Todd Bechthold

Punches in bunches….

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Things really are heating up for midwest fighters. Last Saturday brought nearly 1500 fans to   Wessman Arena to Watch RJ “T-Rex” Laase enter the promotional game. It was a $10 a ticket show and nobody left disappointed. One fan said after Winston Anderson’s debut (now 1,0), “that might have been the most exciting round of boxing I have seen.” Everyone was talking about Dustin “Bull Dog” Mason and Aaron “Gorilla’ Green’s impressive stoppages. But the night belonged to T-Rex and Kaos. Andy “Kaos” Kolle may have put on the performance of his career in fighting one handed for almost the whole fight. He broke his left (he is a southpaw) in the first round of an 8 rounder. Kolle proceeded to put on a display of tremendous heart, footwork and boxing skill in winning a wide UD over the much bigger opponent. RJ “T-Rex” Laase (8,1) got more love from the crowd than he could have ever imagined. The crowd went absolutely nuts when T-Rex entered the ring and somehow got even louder after his thrilling KO of Donny Drama…..Clips from Northland’s News Center

There are three shows confirmed for the next couple months. April 28, Minot ND is putting on a boxing event featuring primarily local talent, half of the card may be Kickboxing or another form of martial art. May 12 brings boxing back to Minneapolis featuring Wilton Hilario vs Jeremy McLaurin in the main event. Great Fight! Also on this card is the debut of amateur stand out Robert Brant. A fight many are itching to see is Dustin “Bull Dog” Mason vs “Bad” Brad Patraw, these two have some bad blood. Glad RDS and Cory Rapacz were able to get it done. Aaron “Gorilla” Green, Tony Lee and Donny Drama will also be fighting on this card.

June looks to bring fans two shows, one confirmed, June 23 at Black Bear Casino featuring Al Sands (2,1). Al will be looking to come back from being stopped in his last fight by area fighter TJ Gibson (1,2). It is also said they plan on having a MN Jr. Middleweight title fight to be announced Tuesday. Minnesota’s best 154, Andy “Kaos” Kolle is on the shelf with a broken hand, so my guess is Dave Peterson vs ?. It is not yet known if this is a promotional title or a sanctioned MN belt. Details are slim on the other June show but we have been told it is happening.

Last but most important, Caleb “Golden” Truax will be fighting in the main event of Showtime’s next televised card, April 20. He will be fighting Jermain Tayor, who is looking to get back to the top of his class. Personally, I think Truax is about to shock the world..

 

Todd Bechthold

Dustin “BullDog” Mason (3,0) vs “Bad” Brad Patraw (7,4) has been added to May 12.

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They want to settle once and for all who is the best 122 in the upper midwest…..This fight is on the undercard to Wilton Hilario vs Jeremy McLaurin. The card also boasts; Aaron “Gorilla” Green, and the debut of Robert Brant. Remember while we are getting this site straightened out please stay up to date on our FaceBook page….. MNBoxingLeague on facebook . We hope to have our site overhaul soon but there is so much going on in midwest boxing right now.

 

Mason on your right, Photo Courtesy Jesse Kelley and MinnesotaBoxing.com

Wilton Hilario vs. Jeremy McLaurin May 12 at the Hyatt.

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It was announced yesterday that Hilario (12,2) will be facing McLaurin (9,3) in the main event of May 12′s show at the Hyatt in Mpls MN. This fight alone is pretty exciting but rumors about this show have many more great match-ups yet to be announced.

 

The key questions to this fight for me will be; Can Jeremy McLaurin stick to his jab and height advantage? Will Wilton Hilario use his jab? How will the fact that McLaurin has been much more active as of late effect things in the ring?

 

This is really good news for MN fight fans. It is great to see MN’s best step up to face one another. These type fights are key, in opinion, to getting midwest guys to the next lever on the national stage. Big praise to all involved in making this happen.

Who was the light heavyweight? Great night of fights at Hinckley Grand Casino

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First off, I want to give credit where credit is due. MSC, RDS company, and Hinckley Grand Casino held what has to be one of the years best cards. I want to specifically congratulate Cory Rapacz on the best matched card of the year in my opinion, there was only one fight where the judges were not needed. All but two fights were close in my mind.

Photos by SnapLocally.com

 

Vanda landing on Williams, courtesy SnapLocally.com

Vanda landing on Williams, courtesy SnapLocally.com

 

This night belonged to Matt Vanda, he is a Minnesota boxing superstar. There is just something about Skeletor/The Predator that feels almost bigger than the fights. His walk to the ring with loud heavy music blaring is really something to be seen in person. Once that first bell rang, this fight pretty much belonged to the teacher. Vanda stalked, landed, joked, taunted, and defended with the aggression and control of guy who knew he was just too much for the less experienced foe.

 

Vanda took my keys to the fight and threw them out the window. Guess there is a reason he has a MUCH greater boxing mind in his corner, Ron Lyke. Vanda acted and looked to be the stronger man. He landed the much more meaningful punches and was pressing and pushing Williams around the ring with what looked to me to be EASE. This fight was pretty much the exact opposite of what I thought it would be. During the 8th round Vandas corner was yelling “He can’t hurt you”. Phil Williams just looked like he never got started. The Drill maybe let two or three of his bombs fly in this fight, and against a guy with as much experience and understanding of the ring as Matt Vanda, that’s just never going to work for somebody who’s game depends on power. As a guy who sat ringside for Williams fight against Echols, I was baffalled and frustrated at the way The Drill approached this one. Matt Vanda deserves credit for how he outclassed Williams from start to finish. In what to me was a big surprise, the judges scored this a split decision, thankfully the right guy won. (SD, 97,93/ 96,95/ 97,94/ Matt Vanda winner) After the fight I started to ask Phil Williams why he never let his hands go? Before I got the words out of my mouth, Williams said “I know I should have let my hands go”.

 

Wilton Hilario (left), Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Wilton Hilario (left), Courtesy SnapLocally.com

 

The co main event was Wilton Hilario vs Leon Bobo and this one had no chance of being pretty. Hilario came to fight, but you need two to tango. Bobo was fast and allusive, but that is pretty much it. I give credit to Hilario for doing all he could to make it a fight and watchable for the fans. (UD, 78,74/ 78,74/ 79,73/ Wilton Hilario winner)

 

Cerresso Fort (right), Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Cerresso Fort (right), Courtesy SnapLocally.com

 

Lamar Harris vs Cerresso Fort was the fight of the night. Well, the fight of the night if you love toe to toe slug fests, and I do. You could see the bad blood Jesse Kelley of MinnesotaBoxing.com had reported yesterday. These guys were throwing home run swings from the start. Both Harris and Fort had the other hurt at several points.  After this fight there should be no question about the chins of either of these guys. Handling the shots of Harris should leave no question that Fort is strongly in the mix a middle. (UD, 59,56/ 58,54/ 59,55/ Cerresso Fort winner)

The take down, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

The take down, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

 

Cory Rapacz (right) with Javontae Starks, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Cory Rapacz (right) with Javontae Starks, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Javontae Starks vs Dan Copp was pretty much what all expected it to be, a great debut for Starks. The first round was mostly just testing out the waters. Round two was ended by the vicious body blows Starks was known for as an amateur. (TKO 1:29 of the second, Javontae Starks winner)

 

Sam Morales (left), Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Sam Morales (left), Courtesy SnapLocally.com

 

The night started with a with a pretty exciting fight. Tim Taggart vs Sam Morales was a slug fest, not much in the way of defense. (MD, 38,38/ 38,38/ 39,37/ last judge scoring for Taggart)

 

Also on the card was Zach Schumach vs Don Tierney (MD, 38,38/ 39,38/ 39,37/ Zach Schumach winner)

 

Stay tuned for Laura Zink’s fight report and comments from Vanda and Williams.

 

Fort landing big, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Fort landing big, Courtesy SnapLocally.com

Weights and some quotes from tonight’s weigh-ins at Hinckley Grand Casino

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Jim Erickson

Jim Erickson

 

The conference room where the weigh-ins were held was standing room only. Trainers, fighters, and spectators were all eager to get this exciting show rolling. Fox Sports North was on hand to cover the beginning of what will culminate tomorrow night at 7:30PM, with FSN coverage beginning at 8:45PM. Jim Erickson went over the rules and some questions were asked about details of what would be acceptable for rapping hands. Matt Vanda looked to be in good spirits as did most of the fighters. Below are some short quotes and weights from tonight’s event.

 

 

Phil “The Drill” Williams – “It is going to be a great show. I told you this would be my year, 2010 will be too.”

 

Phil Williams

Phil Williams

Wilton Hilario – “I am ready to fight”

 

Javontae Starks – “Excited, I am ready. I want to get this first one over with.”

 

Tim Taggart – “I’m excited to be back home to fight.”

 

 

 

Phil Williams 164.5

Matt Vanda 164

 

Leon Bobo 131 – one pound over, he had two hours to get down to 130 fight weight

Wilton Hilario 130

 

Cerresso Fort 161.5

Lamar Harris 160

 

Sam Morales 163.5

Tim Taggart 163

 

Zach Schumach 150

Don Tierney 149.5

 

Dan Copp 154

Javontae Starks 153.5

Top to bottom, Friday the 13th is stacked with good times.

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This event could be called, night of tests. Almost all of the bouts on this card feature huge tests for some of Minnesota’s best boxing prospects. I love it!

 

vandawilliamsnov13This card is going to be fun. Generally you don’t hear a lot of chatter about more than maybe one or two fights on any given card. But MSC’s show this Friday night has been talked about from first fight to last. Honestly, I have not heard more conversation about an opening bout than Tim Taggard vs Sam Morales. Then there are the four TV fights that have everyone excited for Minnesota boxing.

 

Matt Vanda (41,9) vs Phil Williams (11,1) – This fight caused so much excitement the show sold out two weeks before its date. We already have written  quite a bit about this one, and will have Keys to victory for Phil Williams tomorrow. – Remember this fight starts at 8:45 PM, right after the Wild game. It will be the third fight of the night for those in attendance.

 

Wilton Hilario (11,0,1) vs Leon Bobo (18,3,1) – This is a Main Event on most evenings. Hilario did not get his wish to fight Minnesota’s pound for pound best, Jason Litzau, but does get a safer test with a step up fighter. I am really looking forward to this one. While Bobo doesn’t seem to have much pop, only 3 KO’s, he has been in there with the highest of competition and if Hilario can take him down it will be a big boost for his career.

 

Cerresso Fort (7,0) vs Lamar Harris (6,3,2) – This fight is considered by many to be Fort’s biggest to date. For one, he’s on TV, for another, Lamar Harris may have 3 losses and 2 draws but the guy only seems to fight undefeated prospects. While I think Fort will take care of this one handily it will still be a nice step up the ladder.

 

Javontae Starks (debut) vs Dan Copp (1,1) – People can not wait to see what Javontae Starks can do as a pro. He was one of the nations best as an amateur and will now see how that translates into the pro game. From the video I have watched of him, he looks like he is built to be a professional. I have been ringside for both of Dan Copps fights. His first was against Jon Schmidt and he was soundly out boxed and TKO ed in the 3rd. Copp got his win against a fellow MMA guy when the two of them met in a boxing match. Starks should be able to use his boxing skills to make easy work of this fight, but Copp will bring it. He has a motor that keeps on running. Should be a fun one.

 

Tonight is weigh ins for the fight  and The League plans to be there. I will try and put up some photos, weights, and hopefully a few quotes tonight.

 

 7-01-09 Phil Williams part 1

>7-30-09 Phil Williams Part II

7-31-09 Phil Williams Part III

10-26-09 Vanda vs Williams first glance

10-29-09 Whats wrong with wanting to fight the best?

11-09-09 Matt Vanda, keys to victory