Home Boxing News Michael Moore dominates Antonio Fernandes to remain unbeaten

Michael Moore dominates Antonio Fernandes to remain unbeaten

Light middleweight prospect Michael Moore of New Haven, Conn., kept his perfect record intact Saturday with a hard-fought win over game veteran Antonio Fernandes at Mohegan Sun Casino.

The unbeaten Moore (13-0), originally from Cleveland, calmly controlled the fight from start to finish, at times staggering the crafty, elusive Fernandes (3-13-2) over the course of 10 rounds. Fernandes’ awkward defensive style frustrated Moore early on, but as Fernandes (Brockton, Mass.) began to tire, Moore got his second win in latter half of the bout and closed out the fight in style, earning a 98-92, 100-90, 98-92 unanimous-decision win in the main event.

The battle of unbeaten welterweight prospects in the eight-round co-feature lived up to the billing as Zack Ramsey (6-0) of Hartford, Conn., and Edwin Soto (9-1-2) of New Haven waged a back-and-forth battle with both sides jockeying for the upper hand throughout the fight. Ramsey utilized his superior speed, coupled with his ability to weave in and out of trouble, to pull off the upset win by unanimous decision, 78-74, on all three cards.

Picking his spots while fighting on the outside for most of the night, Ramsey dominated the early rounds until Soto mounted a late surge, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the slick boxing by Ramsey in the first half of the fight. After beating Fernandes in September by unanimous decision, Ramsey has now won three fights in a five-month span in 2013, cementing his status as one of the elite, up-and-coming welterweights in the region.

Returning to New England for the second time in less than a month, Lancaster, Pa., welterweight Evincii Dixon (2-2-2) fought to a majority draw against New Haven’s Christian Lao (4-2-1). Dixon previously fought at Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., losing a six-round decision to Nick DeLomba. Last night’s fight was much closer as he and Lao – fighting for the first time in 15 months – exchanged blows throughout four competitive rounds.

Judges Bill Morande and Clark Sammartino scored the bout 38-38 while judge Don Trella scored it 39-37 in favor of Lao. The difference was the opening round, which Trella scored in favor of Lao while Morande and Sammartino awarded it to Dixon.

In the opening bout, New Haven light middleweight David Wilson (2-0) won for the second time in as many bouts, beating tough veteran Danny Lugo (2-5) of Harrisburg, Pa., by unanimous decision, 40-36, on all three scorecards. Lugo absorbed his share of punishment from the taller, faster Wilson, but kept coming forward, making for a fast-paced between the two combatants. Lugo was effective when fighting on the inside, but Wilson’s significant reach advantage and subsequent ability to keep Lugo at bat turned out to be the difference.

Fighting for the first time in more than a year, New England light heavyweight Charles Foster (5-0) kept his perfect record intact with a hard-fought, unanimous-decision win over Philadelphia veteran Greg Hackett (2-13), 40-36, on all three scorecards. Foster was originally supposed to face fellow Philadelphia light heavyweight Taneal Goyco, but Goyco suffered a shoulder injury two days before the weigh-in and Hackett agreed to take the fight on short notice.

Undersized at 5-foot-6 against the taller, leaner Foster, Hackett gave it his all and showed no fear fighting on the inside, but Foster made the most of his short, quick punches to soften Hackett and, like Wilson in the previous bout, used his reach to frustrate his opponent.

In the final bout, heavyweight Solomon Maye (1-0, 1 KO) of New Haven, Conn., making his pro debut, stopped the overmatched John Desmond (0-1) of Duxbury, Mass., thirty-seven seconds into the opening round. Maye came out swinging and Desmond failed to defend himself, prompting the referee to stop the bout.

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