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(MAR 27) LAUGHLIN, NEVADA-Bloodied, battered and disappointed, Elena Reid
suffered her first loss in several years.
Before more than 1,000 people at Harrah's Hotel and Casino, Reid was stopped
by technical knockout by New York's Alicia Ashley in a bantamweight bout
scheduled for eight. Referee Jay Nady stopped the fight because of a cut
over Reid's right eye at 1:04 in the seventh.
Though Reid was the favorite coming into the fight, Ashley was the bigger,
faster and more experienced fighter and showed it.
Using her longer reach and deftly moving side to side, Ashley popped Reid
with jabs and landed some stiff left hands. It was a left hand that caused a
cut over Reid's eye in the sixth round.
"I hurt her in the third round," said Ashley (11-5-1), who usually fights at
a heavier weight and has fought champions such as Chevelle Hallback. "After
that, she didn't want to come in any more."
Reid tried to work inside but found herself walking into left hands. And
when she backed out, Ashley would catch her again with left hands.
"I wanted to show people I could box," said Ashley. "But after I hurt her I
didn't have to move."
The first two rounds Ashley moved quickly around the ring, changing
direction whenever Reid closed in. Both fought out of a left-handed stance.
"I don't think because we're both left-handed that it caused a problem,"
said Ashley. "It's just like two orthodox fighters fighting each other."
Ashley was correct. It was more her handspeed and reach that befuddled Reid
who could not figure out how to effectively attack the rapidly moving
Ashley.
Reid suffered her first loss since losing to Layla McCarter several years
ago. "I'm a little disappointed," said Reid (16-2-5). "I have to go back to
the gym and improve." Ashley felt her amateur experience proved the decisive
factor in winning the fight.
"I'm a boxer. I never go into a fight thinking I'm going to stop someone,"
said Ashley. "I'm a boxer. I know people don't like to see boxers, but
that's what I am."
In a featherweight bout, Fontana's Heather Percival was the underdog against
Michigan's Jennifer Salinas (5-1) who is tutored by famed trainer Floyd
Mayweather Sr. But she proved to be more skilled and won by unanimous
decision. "I landed the straighter shots," said Percival (6-1). "I
guess I have the better trainer."
Percival, who is trained by Larry Ramirez, moved side to side giving angles
to the hard rushing Salinas. The judges scored the fight 40-36 for Percival.
"This was a great win because she was supposed to be the better fighter,"
said Percival. "She was aggressive but it's not always the aggressive
fighter that wins. It's the fighter who connects the most."
From the first round, Percival found holes in Salinas defense. And when
Salinas closed in too fast, she was met with wicked right hands.
In the second round Salinas began to land more punches to the body, but so
did Percival. During the following rounds Percival seemed to have more
energy and began landing three-punch combinations. Occasionally, Salinas
would land a solid right hand, but it wasn't enough.
In a junior middleweight bout, Texan Akondaye Fountain (5-0) won by
technical knockout over Shelly Burton (6-2) of Montana.
Burton pressed the fight but kept getting caught with left and right
counters. It was a fight decided by Fountain's ability to slip and counter.
In the seventh round, Burton rushed Fountain with a fussilade of punches
that caught her off-guard. But when she tired, referee Robert Byrd stopped
it. The crowd booed.
A match between super middleweights ended in a six-round draw between Asa Sandell
(2-0-1) of Sweden and Yolanda Swindell (3-2-1) of Texas.
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