November 4, 2013 / Photos by Sue TL Fox/Harvey Johnson
On Saturday night, November 2, 2013, at the Emerald Queen Casino, in Tacoma, Washington at the BATTLE OF THE BOAT 93 promoted by Brian Halquist Promotions, there were six action-packed boxing matches on the card. In the headliner, Zahir Raheem, 155, 34-3-0 (21KO), wasted little time in taking out his opponent Tim Coleman, 153½, 19-3-1, of Baltimore, Maryland. Raheem displayed speed, timing, devastating body shots and combinations throughout the fight. Quickly after the bell sounded to start the second round, Raheem landed a shot to the gut that dropped Coleman to his knees. After standing up, Raheem then followed to knock Coleman down twice more with right hooks to the body. The finishing move occurred when Coleman stood up for the third time in which he was greeted with a flush left hook to the chin, dropping him in the corner and forcing the referee to stop the contest 2:04 into the round. The fight was scheduled for ten rounds.
Zahir Raheem will look to make his next appearance on the upcoming Battle at the Boat card, tentatively scheduled for January 11th 2014. After easily defeating Santos Pakau, Justin Juuko, and Tim Coleman in 2013, Raheem can anticipate bigger fights headed his way throughout 2014.
“In eight months, Zahir has given us his all in the gym and in the ring,” said Halquist Productions promoter, Brian Halquist. “We couldn’t have asked for anything more. He is absolutely ready for the international stage.”
On the undercard in a fight that took place just prior to the main event, Jeremy McCleary, 130.5, making his pro debut, from Buckley, Washington impressed the local fight crowd with a victory over Manuel Ortega, 131.5, of Lynnwood, Washington. McCleary was able to land his shots efficiently while avoiding most of the punches thrown by Ortega. The contest would go to a majority decision where one judge ruled the fight 40-36 while the other two scored the fight 39-37 all in favor of McCleary.
In the “Quickest” TKO of the night in the third bout of the night, super featherweight Cameron Sevilla-Rivera, making his pro debut, from Fife, Washington, was not only the fastest this night to take out his opponent, but this new “kid” on the block in the pro ranks may be just someone you may want to keep your eye on. What Cameron displayed in the ring was nothing short of “pure talent”, absolute “focus” and he did not waste a punch in the short time this fight took place. Cameron’s opponent Mark Garcia, was also his pro debut from Prosser, Washington. The fight was stopped at 2:44 of the first round.
In the fourth bout of the night, Marcelo Gallardo, 128.5, of Auburn, Washington, took on Corben Page, 129.5, in a four-round bout. The fight was closely fought, and the two fought toe-to-toe for all four rounds. But at the end judges scored the bout a unanimous decision, 40-36, 39-37, and 39-37, all in favor of Gallardo, keeping his record undefeated at 3-0-0.
In the second fight of the night Jared Teer, 152, of Olympia, Washington, making his pro debut won a four-round unanimous decision over Dex Montenegro, 153, of Issaquah, Washington. Judges scores were 40-36 on all cards.
And…in the first fight of the night….Jason Novelli, 167, won his pro debut over Luis Iniguez, 165.5, by a four-round unanimous decision. Final judges scores were 39-37 on all cards.
Next up for Halquist Productions is CageSport XXIX, scheduled for Saturday, December 7th, at the Emerald Queen Casino. Tickets are available now. Battle at the Boat continues to be the longest running professional boxing series at any casino in the United States. The Northwest promotion has had fights televised on many major sports networks including: ESPN, HBO, and ShowTime. For more information about Battle at the Boat 93 and all other Halquist Production event please visit halquistproductions.com and the official Facebook and Twitter Pages of Battle at the Boat and CageSport MMA.