ShoBox Results: Johnson Tops Garcia; Taylor Bests Harrington; Agbeko defeats Steen

By: Sean Crose

Bally’s Atlantic City hotel and casino hosts ShoBox cards on Friday nights, televised live by the cable network. The first is an 8-round scheduled heavyweight bout between Moses Johnson 8-0-1 and Elvis Garcia 12-0. Early skin trading boxers. This was not an opening round where the warriors felt they had to feel each other. The two heavyweights continued to trade in the second. Everyone landed well. By the third time, neither fighter seemed particularly interested in the match going far. Johnson was able to get to his man in the fourth season.

The pace slowed down a bit in the fifth half as the two big boys looked for solid shots. Although neither boxer was as energetic as before, both turned at will in the sixth round. This is a brawl, simple and straightforward. What is evident in seasons seven and eight is the fact that both fighters can pull off a punch. Nothing came close to a takedown during the fight up to that point. The eighth and final round saw Johnson and Garcia continue to go head-to-head. It was an entertaining case, the judges ultimately ruled in Johnson’s favor through a majority decision.

Next up is a planned eight-man superweight match between Marquis Taylor 12-0 and Marlon Harrington 8-0. Looks like Harrington is the stronger one at first. Taylor tried to hold back the opponent’s punches for the second moment to be effective. Taylor continued to use a clever defense in the third inning. Harrington aggressively advanced in the fourth inning. However, by the fifth part, it was Taylor who came forward. Taylor continued to control the range in the sixth. Harrington continued to have difficulty beating his man in the seventh round. The same can be said about the eighth. It can be said that Taylor was well rewarded with a decisive unanimous victory.

It was time for the main event, a 10-round super-middleweight match between Sena Agbeko 26-2 and Isaiah Steen 16-0. The opening round saw Steen hang on and move. However, Agbeko quickly put pressure on his man in the second inning, then continued in the third. Steen seemed to have difficulty controlling range in the fourth inning. At mid game, Agbeko seemed to do a better job of chasing Steen than Steen had thrown Agbeko out of his game.

Friday and Saturday offer nothing special new. The truth is that Steen has no real answer to Agbeko’s aggression, although the Ohio-born player certainly hits the ball with regularity and determination. Agbeko appeared relaxed in season eight, making sure he didn’t use too much force while Steen struggled to stick around and move. The ninth battle was near, as most of the fighting had already taken place. Indeed, Agbeko seems to have a bit cut off her left eye. The tenth goal saw Steen effectively use a defensive strategy that served him unevenly throughout the game.

After the final bell, Agbeko was able to leave the ring with a brand new decisive victory on her resume.