‘The Sniper’ assassinates ‘The Assassin;’ Dharry edges ‘Cutting Hedge’

Feb 26, 2013 Sports

---

By Michael Benjamin

He was at his ferocious best, yet Elton ‘The Bully’ Dharry had to dig deep for every minute of ten rounds in order to defeat Jamaican, Rudolph ‘Cutting Edge’ Hedge when the two faced off in the main event for the World Boxing Union (WBU) bantamweight title on the ‘Night of Champions 2’ boxing card at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall (CASH), Sunday evening last.
The main supporting bout between Kwesi ‘Lightening Struck Assassin’ Jones and Barbadian, Shawn ‘The Sniper’ Cox had promised to be action packed but dwindled to a one sided affair after the ‘Sniper’ aimed correctly and assassinated ‘The Assassin’ way before he was able to effect his murderous plans.
Patrick Boston proved no match for Syrian, Mahmood ‘The Extractor’ Loul and after an especially vicious attack in the second round; the Guyanese tumbled to the canvass, forcing the referee to wave the proceedings off on the stroke of the bell, while Dexter Marques needed merely 2:42secs of the second frame to dispose of Selwyn Lett to take the honours in their flyweight encounter. Rudolph Fraser was also in winners’ row and avenged an earlier loss to Berbician, Richard Williamson, after the doctor halted the bout at the end of the 2nd of their 8 rounds flyweight affair.
Dharry was all business at the start of the bout and merely one minute had elapsed when he launched a two fisted attack that pushed the Jamaican into the ropes. ‘The Bully’ followed up with a crunching right hook to Hedge’s jaw and he tumbled to the canvass for the mandatory 8 count.
Hedge managed to beat the count and upon resumption, climbed on his bicycle and managed to evade the ensuing onslaught up to the bell.
He entered the second stanza with high guards while adopting a peek-a-boo style but Dharry still managed to breach his defence, first with a vicious left hook and then a stiff straight right. Hedge refused to be daunted and lashed out with a wicked body shot. Dharry was up to the challenge and responded with a crunching body dig shortly before the bell.
Hedge greeted Dharry with a straight right at the start of the third round but Dharry slipped to his right and unleashed a four punch combination that pushed the Jamaican backwards. Dharry was relentless in this round and forced Hedge to cover up from the onslaught.
It was only in the fourth round but already Hedge sported bruises and lumps under both eyes. Nevertheless, he exhibited remarkable courage, exchanging blows with his counterpart despite coming out the worse for wear.

The pace picked up in the fifth round when Dharry launched a body attack; two wicked left hooks slammed into Hedge’s body but rather than wilting, the Jamaican responded with a vicious straight right and a left hook that earned him admirable applause from the medium sized crowd that attended the show.
Dharry employed some psychology and declined the stool during the one minute respite at the end of the 6th frame while his adversary could hardly wait for the bell before he plunked down to allow his trainer, Wayne Sharpe to perform his magic. Dharry must have regretted that decision as Hedge stepped on the accelerator in the succeeding round. It was around that time that ‘The Bully,’ recognizing that he was up against a game opponent, adopted a more cautious and systematic approach. Hedge still sported bruises on his face but he displayed remarkable courage, matching Dharry’s every blow.
When Dharry had upped the ante early in the fight he had Hedge on the retreat and few imagined the fight progressing beyond the halfway stage; Hedge surprised them all when he not only stayed around up to the 8th round but came out slugging. A vicious toe to toe battle ensued and for the first time in the fight Dharry appeared to be fatigued and tired.
The ferocious exchanges continued into the 9th round with the Jamaican beginning to assert himself with stiff exchanges. Dharry then began to show the effects of the tough battle and resorted to holding. Hedge then landed a wicked straight right and followed up with a crunching left hook shortly before the bell rang.
The 10th round was surely a gem as both pugilists went after each other. Dharry’s countenance remained unscathed while Hedge sported welts and bumps under both eyes. Both fighters enjoyed great moments up to the bell. The fans settled for the eleventh round when the ring announcer declared the bout over. Subsequent queries by this writer elicited a response that all championship bouts under the aegis of the WBU were restricted to 10 rounds. (This issue will be fully ventilated in a subsequent article).
After the bout, Dharry admitted that the Jamaican was indeed a tough contender. He said that he had wanted to prove that he was a worthy champion and he hoped that after Sunday night’s performance his detractors would be convinced of his prowess. He said that Hedge was truly a warrior and envisaged a great future for the Jamaican.
Hedge was a little more restrictive in his views but while praising Dharry said that he was not optimistic of clinching a close decision. “I would like to do this again,” he declared when asked if a return encounter was on the cards. Posed a similar question, Dharry said he did not rule it out but he needed to rest after such a tough bout. “Afterwards we could discuss the possibility of a return clash,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jones hardly fitted the bill of a worthwhile contender despite his many pre-fight boasts. He approached the first round timidly while Cox appeared cautious with none willing to take unnecessary chances. This resulted in a dull first round where both fighters loaded up but failed to land any meaningful blows.
The second round was a replica of the first where Jones swung aimless blows and without waiting to see where they landed or if they were effective, clung to the arms of the muscular Cox thus nullifying his power shots.
Jones continued with his strange tactics of lunging aimlessly and then holding on for dear life even as Jones attempted to wriggle free to throw his bombs. The referee warned Jones on several occasions for excessive holding and eventually became disgusted and deducted a point from his score. This did not deter Jones who continued to hold and at one time, wrapped both arms around Cox’s legs to in crude evasive tactics.
The muscular Bajan finally broke free and slammed home a roundhouse left followed by a vicious right hook. Jones staggered from the first blow and tumbled down from the second. He managed to rise when the referee had reached the 4th of the mandatory eight count but his legs were rubbery and refused to obey him, forcing the referee to wave off the one sided fight at 55secs of the 4th round. A few minutes after regaining control of his faculties, Jones attempted to address the crowd, explaining the reasons for his limp performance but no one seemed to be in a mood for his diatribe and booed him accordingly.
Rudolph Fraser avenged an earlier loss to Richard Williamson and broke his losing streak after the latter fighter sustained an injury to his left shoulder and was deemed unfit to continue after an examination by the doctor. The time of the stoppage was 1:40secs of the 6th round. In between that period, both fighters enjoyed bright moments and it was clear that Fraser was better prepared and more determined to cart off the spoils; the Williamson injury removed the input of the judges.
Patrick Boston was absolutely no match for Mahmood ‘The Extractor’ Loul and was knocked out on the stroke of the bell to end the second frame. “The Dentist” is only now making his debut as a professional boxer though he has compiled a decent record as a kick boxer. Indeed, he needn’t to resort to the use of his feet as Boston was hardly able to withstand the clubbing blows of his fist. A vicious right collided to Boston’s temple and he fell to the canvass with a thud. He rose but referee Dexter Torrington ruled that he was in no condition to continue and waved the bout off.
Marques has shown great improvement to his strategy and has demonstrated the ability to quarter the ring; a trait glaringly absent from his repertoire in earlier bouts. As such, Lett did not stand a chance. The Bajan attempted several weak punches but was absolutely no match for Marques who went on to unleash a barrage of punches that forced the referee, Torrington, to call a halt at 2:42secs of the second round.
The card produced some inspiring performances and might just be the catalyst for the return of the crowds to the fights. Some fighters did back their chat while others simply confirmed to the old Guyanese idiom that ‘mouthar and guitar are two vastly different things.’

---

---