Courtesy of Halquist Productions:
Battle at the Boat 90 featured high-paced action in which only one fight went the distance. (SEE PHOTOS)
In the main event Jan. 5 at Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Rob Frankel put on an overwhelming performance that concluded in the 5th round.
Scheduled for 10 rounds, Frankel (31-12-1, 6 KO’s) came away with the unanimous technical decision victory over Jermaine White (17-5-0, 9 KO’s). Frankel had control throughout the whole fight. In the 2nd round, Frankel landed two knockdowns that put White in serious trouble. White showed a lot of heart trying to stay on his feet and continue the fight.
After getting knocked down twice in the 2nd round, White lost his mouthpiece twice in what looked like a strategy to regain composure. White spent a majority of the rest of the fight ducking and swaying back and forth while throwing the occasional power punch trying to land the knockout.
In the 5th round, White head-butted Frankel, which was ruled accidental. The fight was stopped so that the doctor could take a look. After a few moments of inspection, the doctor decided that Frankel could not continue which stopped the fight and sent the decision to the cards where the judges ruled unanimously in favor for Rob Frankel. Two judges scored the fight 49-44 while the third judge scored the fight 50-43.
Making his professional debut, Zachary Cooper had the entire showroom standing on their feet when he landed a knockout 30 seconds into the 1st round. His opponent, Rafael Umarov (1-5-0), was knocked out cold, facing the canvas, causing the event to be paused for a good amount of time. Cooper trains out of the infamous Mayweather Boxing Gym in boxing capital city of the world, Las Vegas, Nev.
In the semi-main event, Marcelino Pineda moved to 3-0-0 with 3 KO’s after an admirable performance against Carlos Rodriguez (1-0-0, 1 KO). Pineda is quickly growing a fan base after turning pro in June at Battle at the Boat 87. Rodriguez was knocked down twice in the 3rd round. After the 2nd knockdown, the referee stopped the fight due giving Pineda his 3rd TKO in as many fights.
Lots of anticipation was built for Daryl Gardner’s 2nd career fight. Gardner, who turned pro at the last battle at the boat event and knocked his opponent down four times in the 1st round before the referee stopped the fight was not as fortunate this time around. Gardner came out in the same style, hitting the ground running and even landing a 1st round knockdown was knocked down in the 2nd round and wasn’t able to recover enough to continue the fight. The referee stopped the fight after the knockdown 2:34 into the 2nd round.
The rest of the card was filled with entertaining action that kept the fans on their feet. Dex Montenegro defeated Angel Diaz with a 2nd round TKO. Enoch Wilson came out victorious in his professional debut with a 2nd round TKO as well. Cory Vom Baur improved to 2-1-0 after his unanimous decision victory over Juan Martinez.
Coming up
The next Battle at the Boat is scheduled for March 23. CageSport XXIII, featuring the region’s top MMA fighters, is scheduled for Feb. 16 at Emerald Queen Casino. Learn more at www.halquistproductions.com.
For photos from Battle at the Boat 90, check out a slideshow below or click here.
