OPENING SALVO OF THE ‘JOSE SULAIMAN WORLD INVITATIONAL’ TOURNAMENT

Francisco Santana, Chris van Heerden, Fredrick Lawson and Brad Solomon Victorious!!

IN Louisville, KY, The highly anticipated Opening Chapter of the ‘Jose Sulaiman World Invitational Welterweight Tournament’ produced a night of fireworks, for fans at the KFC YUM! Center and those watching around the world on the SportsLive OTT service, BoxNation, and other international outlets as everyone was treated to a sensational night of world-class boxing presented by Evander Holyfield’s The Real Deal Boxing.

“It was a memorable evening of boxing with four valiant fighters moving on to the second round and a terrific undercard to compliment the opening round of the tournament,” said Holyfield. “I can’t wait to see how the next round plays out.”

In a resounding upset, #1 seeded Felix Diaz, (19-3-0, 9 KO’s), was beaten by #8 seeded Francisco ‘Chia Santana, (27-6-1, 12 KO’s) via majority decision in their ten-round bout. Santana proved to be the aggressor throughout, as Diaz was in retreat and unable to mount a consistent office. Santana may have fate on his side as he actually began the tournament as an alternate, and was elevated into the first round when Derrieck Cuevas was forced to withdraw a few weeks earlier.

Seeded #2 in the tournament, South Africa’s Chris van Heerden, (26-2-1, 12 KO’s), returned to battle with a dominant ten round unanimous decision over #7 seeded Germany’s Timo Schwarzkopf, (18-2-0, 10 KO’s). Scores were 98-92, 98-92, 98-92, 97-93 and 97-93. Van Heerden was sharp and extremely active, showing no signs of ring rust despite 18 months oot.

Fighting from Ghana, #3 ranked Fredrick Lawson, (27-1-0, 21 KO’s), scored a convincing 10-round unanimous decision over #6 ranked Baishanbo Nasiywula, (13-1-1, 6 KO’s) of China. Scores from the five judges were 99-91, 96-94, 98-92, 97-93 and 97-93. Lawson pressed the action throughout and landed the cleaner shots. But credit is due to Nasiyiwula who didn’t arrive into the country until Thursday afternoon after a 14-hour flight because of visa issues.

In the fourth quarterfinal matchup, Brad Solomon, of Douglasville, Georgia improved to 28-2-0, 9 KO’s), with a ten-round decision over Paddy Gallagher, (13-4-0, 8 KO’s) of Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Gallagher scored a knockdown in the first stanza, but Solomon was able to take control of the fight in the middle rounds enroute to a ten-round split decision with scores of 97-93, 97-94, 95-94, 95-94 and 96-93. Gallagher was winning the bout at the midway point as the scores were announced thanks to the tournament’s Open Scoring feature, and that was enough to push Solomon into an extra gear to mount an impressive comeback.

The semi-finals will feature Francisco Santana vs. Brad Solomon and Chris van Heerden vs. Fredrick Lawson. Real Deal Sports & Entertainment expects to formally announce the date and location soon.