Shabazz wins first bout at Olympic Trials
The second half of opening day bouts were contested on Sunday night with 20 action packed match-ups at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Men’s Boxing in Mobile, Ala. Two returning Olympians earned their first victories of the event, joining 18 winners from Sunday evening in the winners bracket semifinals.Two-time Olympian and 2007 World Champion Rau’shee Warren (Cincinnati, Ohio) took the ring for the first bout of the session, facing off with 2011 National Champion John Franklin (Fort Carson, Colo.). The bout was close through the early going, but Warren began to pull away later in the contest and took a 22-13 decision over Franklin. 2011 USA Boxing National Championships bronze medalist Shawn Simpson (Chicago, Ill.) avenged his loss from the aforementioned event with a convincing 29-14 victory over Emilio Sanchez (Pacoima, Calif.)
Warren’s 2008 Olympic teammate Raynell Williams (Cleveland, Ohio) won his first bout of the tournament on Sunday evening as well. Williams also battled in a close contest, taking on Damon Allen (Philadelphia, Pa.). Yet Williams rode a strong third round to an 18-12 win and a spot in the semifinals. Two-time national champion Jose Ramirez (Avenal, Calif.) put on an impressive performance in his first bout of the tournament. Ramirez more than tripled the output of his opponent who shares his last name, Toribio Ramirez (Bowling Green, Fla.) to claim the quarterfinal win by a 35-11 margin. Kenneth Sims (Chicago, Ill.) joined the pair in the semifinals with a 35-17 win over three-time National Golden Gloves champion Erick DeLeon (Lincoln Park, Mich.).
Top ranked welterweight Errol Spence (Desoto, Texas) began his attempt at the Olympics on Sunday evening in a match-up with the U.S. Army’s Samuel Vasquez (Fort Carson, Colo.). Spence took a 24-17 decision over Vasquez to advance to the semifinal round. Spence’s runner-up at the recent USA Boxing National Championships, Luis Olivares (Glendale, Ariz.), dropped his tournament opener in the welterweight division. Bryant Perrella (Lehigh Acres, Fla.) took a 27-21 decision over Olivares to join Spence in the winners circle.
The light heavyweight division featured a Washington DC showdown in quarterfinal action as USA Boxing National Championships silver medalist Jerry Odom (Bowie, Md.) battled Last Chance Qualifier champion Shaborn Ryals (Washington DC). Ryals kept the bout close early, only trailing by three points with one round remaining. Yet Odom turned up the heat in the third and won a 31-20 decision over Ryals.
Fireworks flew in the super heavyweight division as USA Boxing National Championships bronze medalist Dominic Breazale (Alhambra, Calif.) breezed through his bout with Donovan Dennis (Davenport, Iowa). Breazale landed hard shots from the opening bell, sending Dennis to the canvas and causing the referee to halt the bout at the 2:10 mark of the first round. Last Chance Qualifier champion Brett Rather (Las Vegas, Nev.) continued his winning streak against the 6-7 Jonathan Hamm (St. Paul, Minn.). The two battled to the final bell with the bout ending an 18-18 tie, but Rather pulled out the win on his 83-81 total punch count edge.
Olympic Team Trials action will return with two sessions on Monday as the challengers bracket opens competition and the winners bracket moves into the semifinal round.
Sunday evening results:
178 lbs: Sijuola Shabazz, Las Cruces, N.M., dec. Robert Brant, Oakdale, Minn., 14-8
Up next:
178 lbs/winners bracket: Sijuola Shabazz, Las Cruces, N.M., vs. Shaborn Ryals, Capitol Heights, Md.
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