Quincy Miner: About His Shoulder Injury

A statement from heavyweight boxer Quincy Miner, regarding his shoulder injury suffered November 28 in a boxing match with Brad Laffin, and his plans for the near future:

“The fight with Laffin was surely going my way until Laffin fell on me…it did give me a certain amount of pleasure to knock him down a couple of notches as he went down twice in the second round.  My shoulder was separated.  The ringside doctors used a towel like a sling to yank and pop my shoulder back in place in the locker room.  I can start training in about 7 days.  That fight was dedicated to my little brother who was shot and killed back in 2006 at the age of 19, so I do feel robbed of a win – but that is just how things go in the boxing world sometimes.  I will be back in Minnesota in January ’09 for a couple more fights, probably.

I would like to end my comment with a tribute to Jake Betz, who passed away in August.  I fought him in June and he was a good guy.  He was willing to give me a rematch but [sadly] that can’t happen.  My condolences to his family and friends.”

Boxing Results from Sioux Falls, November 28

Tonight we double our pleasure with a double-bill of four amateur and five professional bouts.

Amateur Bouts

• Logan Rupert defeats David Colon – both boys show good effort but Rupert displays more aggression.  Colon’s single punches seem to land with greater effect, but he seems unable to string them together.
• Dakota LeRoy defeats Lucas White Tail – LeRoy moves more elegantly and boxes more smoothly, while White Tail’s heavier hands tend to take a heavier toll when they land.
• Ryan Soft defeats Ali Kersorvic – Kersorvic is visibly shorter, more muscular and bulky…Soft is longer, leaner, and more wiry…the much more experienced Soft (45-5-) uses his greater length to land frequently in the first.  About halfway through the round Kersovic (8-2) inadvertently steps one foot far under the rope and off the ring apron and slips to one knee.  About twenty seconds after the restart Soft knocks Kersovic’s mouthpiece out of his mouth.  Another twenty seconds after the next restart the ref pauses action to instruct both fighters to abstain from talking.  Soft lands his left hook and left jab almost at will., while Kersorvic has his best results when timing his puches to coincide with Soft’s.  Second round, the ref pauses action again, this time it’s unclear what instructions or warnings are given.  Thirty seconds later Kersorvic loses his mouthpiece a second time and is warned again.  Third round, Soft comes out with his hands way out in front of him, shows tremendous aggression, seems intent on retiring his opponent.  Soft’s jabs are snappping Kersorvic’s head back dramatically.  Kersorvic experiments with an uppercut but it is ineffectual.  Soft wins this bout decisively.
• Nick Norby defeats Jacob Fox- The two young men engage near the center of the ring and trade ferociously on more or less even terms for most of twenty seconds.  Fox eventually crowd’s Norby back into his own corner, and thereafter Fox seems a little more subdued for the remainder of the round.  Second round, Norby has more success throwing selectivgely until he is hit with a low blow that results in a brief pause in the action.  This round is more artful and shows that both young men know how to move their feet and their heads.  A slightly more weary back-and-forth punctuates the second round.  Third round, Norby is leading his combinations with a Samaurai-style leg kick, which tends to telegraph is intentions.  Norby lands a right to the throat of Fox, who shows no reaction – but that had to hurt.  With one decisive round for Fox (the first) and two rounds more or less even, this one looked to me like a win for Fox.  But then I’m not a judge.

Professional Bouts

• Jeremy McLaurin (now 1-0 with 1 kayo) defeats Felix Martinez (now 0-1) by TKO in round 2 of a 4-round lightweight bout – Early in the first Martinez appears to hurt McLaurin, who stumbles backward into a neutral corner and covers up.  Martinez launches one of the longest extended attacks I’ve ever seen, most of the puches blocked by McLaurin’s hands and forearms.  Coming back to life after a ridiculously long period of inactivity, McLaurin is thereafter in charge for the remainder of the round, landing crisp two punch combinations.  Martinez doesn’t seem very threatening anymore, but then McLaurin opens up pretty wide at times and Martinez almost can’t help but land an occasional power shot.  Second round: McLaurin lands a significant right hand to the top of Martinez’ head and puts him down.  After the restart Martinez makes a valiant effort to stay upright and awake, but it’s a losing battle and referee Mark Nelson makes the appropriate decision to stop the fight about half a minute later, after a second knockdown.
• Ed Perry (now 13-4 with 7 kayos) defeats Ken Schomber (now 3-17 with 3 kayos) in round 2 of a 4-round heavyweight bout.  Schomber is a game old man without a good plan.  He  may be too tough for his own good, eating the strong jabs and hooks of tough Ed Perry throughout the first round.  Schomber gets a brief respite from his beating with about fifteen seconds left in the first when he loses his mouthpiece, then surprisingly lands a crisp one-two in the last ten seconds, shortly after the restart.  Second round, referee Nelson makes the right (and inevitable) call to stop the fight, resulting in a TKO win for Perry.
• Brad Laffin (now 5-2 with 1 no-contest) and Quincy Miner (3-3 with 1 no contest) achieve no result after less than 2 rounds a 4-round heavyweight bout.  Laffin and Miner spend most of the first round standing at close quarters and moving slowly, neither man landing any meaningful punches.  Midway through the second round Miner flattens Laffin with a left, but Laffin is up in plenty of time and continues the fight.  After about 30 seconds of further action, Miner lands a monstrous left hook to the temple of Laffin, who falls forward, pushing Miner through the ropes and halfway out of the ring and then landing on top of him.  Miner is clearly in great pain and unable to rise after several minutes – I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a separated shoulder or a broken collar bone.  Laffin, on the other hand, is up within seconds.  This is a real shame, as Miner will be robbed of a win he was surely earning.  Result: No Contest.
• Brian Cohen (now 8-1 with 5 kayos) defeats Tony Ault (now 10-24 with 10 kayos) by TKO in round 2 of an 8-round super middleweight bout.  The pudgy and balding Ault and muscular Cohen, who is built like a tyrannosaurus, provide an entertaining visual contrast.  Cohen looks like Mister Universe from the waist up, but neither man gains the upper hand in the first round.  It may be that Cohen is biding his time and trying to get in some rounds, but the very experienced Ault is making a serious effort with unfortunately lackluster results.  Round 2, some serious body punching by Cohen puts Ault down once, and the fight resumes for about fifteen seconds before he does it again.  Fight over.  Mercifully.
• Caleb Truax (now 9-0 with 6 kayos) defeats Larry Brothers (now 7-32 with 5 kayos) by TKO in round 1 of a 6-round super middleweight bout.  Brothers lands a few lunging jabs, even getting through with one that might have stung, before Truax knocks him down with a hateful combination to the body.  Moments after the fight restarts, Truax takes Brothers out with a ferocious flurry of body and head punches.  At the end the usually durable Brothers is cowering in a neutral corner with one hand over his head in a submissive posture.
• Joey Abell (now 20-4 with 19 kayos) loses by DQ to Jason Nicholson (now 18-24 with 10 kayos) in round 1 of an 8-round heavyweight bout.  This bout took an regrettable turn when Abell had Nicholson badly hurt: Nicholson took a knee and put his head down, whereupon Abell finished a combination with a vicious left hook to the back of Nicholson’s downturned head.  There was nothing unsporting about it, and Abell appeared genuinely distressed while he waited in a neutral corner.  Nicholson, for his part, appeared to be (and professed to be) in pain and out of equilibrium for a good five minutes afterwards.  The decision by referee Mark Nelson was obviously the right one, despite the smattering of boos in the arena – you can’t hit a man who’s taken a knee, and if you do you’re stuck with the result.  It’s unfortunate for Abell, who was winning the fight in dominating fashion – I won’t say that Nicholson didn’t throw a punch, but I know for sure he didn’t land a punch…and I honestly don’t recall him throwing one.

…

Quote of the night: “I’ve been going to fights since 1960 and I have never been to a show where they announced the boxers’ heights.”  Boxing writer Jeff Jowett at ringside

Upcoming Boxing Event: Sioux Falls, November 28

Boxing fans in southwestern Minnesota have a rare treat this Friday, as a pro boxing card is scheduled to come off in Sioux Falls for the first time in twenty years.  The bout will be hosted at the Sioux Falls Convention Center and is being promoted by Seconds out Promotions.  What to watch for:

• Coming off back-to-back losses for the first time in his career, Joey Abell hopes to impress with a win against durable and experienced veteran Jason Nicholson.
• Caleb Truax looks for rounds and experience as he squares off against Larry Brothers, who has done ring time with Anthony Bonsante, Dave Peterson, Gee Cullmer, Anthony Dirrell, and Harry Joe Yorgey.
• Brian Cohen, last seen in Minnesota winning by TKO at Fortune Bay Casino in August, faces faded veteran Tony Ault in one of the night’s two eight-rounders, though the two fighters’ recent histories tend to suggest it won’t last nearly that long.
• The notoriously inactive heavyweight Brad Laffin, veteran of six fights in the last five years, meets Quincy Miner in a bout curiously listed at light heavyweights.
• In what may be the mismatch of the night, heavyweight Ed Perry (12-4-2) is matched against Ed Schomber, possessor of a 3-16 record and an 11-bout losing streak.
• Jeremy McLaurin of Coon Rapids makes his professional appearance against fellow debutante Felix Martinez of Bloomington.