There have been worse match-ups in boxing main events in 2015 than light heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson taking on fringe contender Tommy Karpency like he did on Spike Friday. But it’s a relatively short list. And fittingly, the fight was relatively short.
Stevenson is one of boxing’s purest punchers, capable of hurting anyone with any shot. He might’ve rocked Karpency in the very first round, but Karpency — mainly a contender of any kind for beating a faded Chad Dawson — recovered for a nice 2nd. Well, a nice most-of-2nd. By the end of the 2nd, he had caught a left hand on the neck, and such is Stevenson’s left that a neck shot had Karpency effectively done. His world was rocked from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. He went down after a couple more punches, and somehow got up, unable to continue but given a reprieve by the bell to end the round.
It was only another few seconds into the 3rd before Stevenson landed another left, and Karpency was flat on his face. Karpency again got up, somehow, and the referee saved him from a coma by refusing to allow him to continue.
So that was pointless. Pretty much any fight between Stevenson and anyone not named Sergey Kovalev is, but we’ve seen both sides take turns ducking the other. There are, at least, better fights than this for Stevenson, and he could use a substantial upgrade.
(Photo: Stevenson before the fight; via)
