LOWELL, MA (May 9, 2012) – Shujaa El-Amin – aka Dion Savage (12-3, 6 KOs) – spoiled tonight’s “Homecoming” for popular brawler “Irish” Joey McCreedy (13-6-2, 6 KOs), who was fighting in front of his hometown fans for the first time as a professional boxer.El-Amin, however, dominated the action from the opening round against the game McCreedy, capturing the vacant United States Boxing Organization (“USBO”) super middleweight title in the main event at Lowell Memorial Auditorium.
The Flint, Michigan-invader won nine of 10 rounds on two judges’ scorecards and swept all 10 on the other.
“I fight for oppressed people all over the world, not myself,” El-Amin commented after the fight. “I come from a poor place and want to build-up my city. I’m fighting for my father who has been imprisoned in Illinois for 15 years for a crime he’s innocent. We have proof. It’s an injustice. His name is Dion Savage, Sr.”
“Homecoming” – presented by Chicago Fight Clubs Promotion (“CFC Promotion”) — was the first professional boxing show held in seven years in Lowell, a well-known hotbed for amateur boxing, annually hosting the New England Championships. Lowell is best known as the home of “Irish” Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund, the principal subjects in the award-winning movie, “The Fighter.” They worked the corners for McCreedy and his CFC Promotion stable-mate, Sean Eklund (10-4, 2 KOs), who is the nephew of Micky and Dicky.
In the co-feature, Ward-trained light welterweight Sean Eklund (11-4, 2 KOs), also fighting at home in Lowell for the first time as a pro, won a unanimous decision in his first eight-round bout from 22-fight veteran James Ventry.
“I could hear the fans and it was inspirational,” the 28-year-old Eklund said after the fight, “but I had to stay within myself. I got wild a few times. I hurt him in the first round and loaded up trying to knock him out. He’s a tough kid who has been stopped only twice. I didn’t have much amateur experience, so I’m gaining experience now, and have gotten better in each of my last three fights.”
Chicago light welterweight Antonio “Aztec God of War” Canas (6-0-1) overcame two third-round knockdowns to remain unbeaten in a six-round majority draw in an entertaining fight with Tyrone Chatman (9-1-2, 6 KOs).
US Marine Jimmy Smith, who did two tours in Iraq, decked Rafael Jusino in the opening round but soon the fight was halted after a cut opened over Jusino’s eye from and accidental head-butt. The match was ruled a no contest.
New Jersey middleweight Anthony Jones (1-0-1) won his first pro fight with a unanimous four-round decision over pro-debuting Bernie Ongewe.
As in September, I once again ran out of gas in the 10th & 11th championship rounds of October & November with this column, but I recovered to complete them and will unleash a few more flurries to close out the 12th and final round.
In the first week of October, Hassan N’Dam won a UD over Curtis Stevens in an eliminator for the right to challenge Jermaine Taylor who defeated aging Sam Soliman to regain the IBF Middleweight title. How Taylor even earned this title shot is another story altogether, but it is all irrelevant as he is now the champion. However he will not have too much time to savor his victory as he has assault and battery charges pending against him and an upcoming court fight that may turn out to be the toughest fight of his life, just when things started to look up for him in boxing, we wish him luck.
