Whether a Cougar, Tiger or Jaguar, Dexter Gonsalves remains a dangerous cat

Sep 05, 2015 Sports

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By Michael Benjamin

Professional boxers, maybe in an attempt to scare the living daylights out of their opponents, affix frightening appendages to their names, maybe as some sort of psychological ploy. The sport is inundated with their types, ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson, John ‘The Beast’ Mugabe and James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith among others.
Some boxers justify their sobriquets but there have been times when after damp performances boxing pundits have suggested that boxers affix realistic tabs like John ‘The Mouse’ Taylor or Peter ‘The Fright’ Douglas.
Guyanese boxers have developed similar ploys and we’ve had Leon’ King Kong’ O’Neil, Howard ‘Battersea Bomber’ Eastman, Quincy ‘Assassin’ Jones and Elton ‘Coolie Bully’ Dharry — ominous tabs that seek to reduce the man in the other corner to a whimpering mouse thus procuring the psychological advantage or in boxing terminology, drawing first blood.
There are exceptions to the rule and we’ve heard of the more subtle sobriquets like ‘Sugar’ Ray Leonard, Pernell ‘Sweet Pea’ Whittaker while Muhammad Ali practiced his trade devoid of any sobriquet.
Boxing history is replete with pugilists that appeared unable to harm the proverbial fly until that first bell sounded and as Guyanese would say, ‘all hell breaks loose.’ Dexter Gonsalves belongs to the last group and is scheduled to match gloves with his countryman, Iwan Azore for the latter fighter’s welterweight championship belt in the main bout of a card dubbed ‘Brawl at the Mall’ on the outskirts of Georgetown, at the Giftland Office Max Liliendaal facility on Saturday September 26.
Gonsalves shuttles around in the most unassuming manner and gives the impression that he is a virtual walkover. His demeanor is deceptive and many boxers signed to fight him with a smirk on their faces, maybe visualizing the easy route to a big purse and a similar victory only to have their dreams deflated.
Barbados based Guyanese pugilist, Revlon Lake, nurtured such thoughts when he faced off with Gonsalves for the National Jnr/Lightweight title in the 28th edition of Guyana Fight Night cards. The result was brutal as Gonsalves employed a vicious two fisted attack and blasted Lake into oblivion and left those in attendance awestruck by such brutality.
The experts say that most fighters experience such a flash in the pan and fade into oblivion afterwards. Not Gonsalves, he went on to defeat Mark Austin on points and though the display lacked the brutality of the Lake encounter, the trained eye detected the precision with which Gonsalves delivered his punches and the animalistic fervor of his attacks.
He was scheduled to fight Austin in a return bout late last year but the fight was aborted after Austin collapsed in the dressing room shortly before he was to have entered the ring. This had caused the fans to joke that Austin reminisced on the first encounter and collapsed out of fright.
Gonsalves’ only problem is that he is not fighting as frequently as he ought. Really, this is no fault of his; it’s just that the Friday Nights fights had hit a snag and the youngster, with no manager to look over his affairs, depended on the officials of the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC) to pilot his career through frequent outings.
Gonsalves only acquisition of international activity is his fledgling career is his tenure at the Cecil Forde Boxing Gym in Marabella when he was based in Trinidad and Tobago. It seems though, as if fights are more easily accessible in Guyana and he opted to return home.
He boasts an 11-1 record with the only defeat coming at the hands of Barbadian, Miguel Antoine. Boxing pundits have seen Antoine in action, when he defeated all of his Guyanese opponents in previous bouts, and would admit that he is no pushover.
In an earlier interview, Gonsalves disclosed that one of his biggest wins was against Barbadian Prince Lee Isadore and boxing buffs will remember, oh so well, when the latter fighter fought Clive Atwell late last year and extended him into the deep rounds before the Guyanese eventually stopped him and captured the Caribbean Boxing Federation (CABOFE) light/welterweight title.
This is the Isadore that Gonsalves knocked out in the 2nd round in a fight in Trinidad in 2009. Gonsalves has already opened camp at the Forgotten Youth Foundation (FYF) and is under the tutelage of Joseph Murray and Sebert Blake and from all appearances, he means business.
His training regimen consists of numerous rounds of sparring supported by several fast paced rounds on the heavy punching bag where he sustains his stamina. He also engages in another set of rounds on the light punching bag to enhance his speed.
A lanky boxer with deceptive power, Gonsalves was also taken through his paces with several furious rounds on the strike pads while rounding off sessions with a lengthy period with the jump rope followed by a hectic session of calisthenics.
He is not the garrulous type and one literally has to place him at gunpoint to drag out any threat or vile remark against his opponent. This is what makes him as dangerous as a cobra. As the Guyanese idiom goes, ‘Easy snake does bite hot.’  Amidst such raw talent and ferocious application, Gonsalves refuses to attach any suggestive sobriquet to his name but those that would have had the opportunity to see him in action believes he should consider ‘The Cougar,’ ‘The Tiger’ or ‘The Jaguar,’ not to frighten away his opponent but more to warn them of his pugilistic propensities.
The truth is, whether he chooses to brag or even affix any of the aforementioned sobriquets, Dexter Gonsalves is, and will always remain a dangerous cat.

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