TRUE to his word, Linden’s Edmond De Clou recorded a majority decision over world renowned Howard ‘Battersea Bomber’ Eastman to land the  national middleweight title in the main bout of the Guyana Boxing Board of Control organised Thirst Park Explosion at the Banks DIH ground on Saturday night.

Two rain interruptions and a faulty floodlight did little or nothing to prevent De Clou from overwhelming a ring rusty Eastman, following Gwendolyn ‘Stealth Bomber’ O’ Neil’s split decision win over Pauline London which saw her retain her WIBA heavyweight  title.

Before the start of both contests, heavy downpours had officials and spectators running for cover, even as the uncovered ring was left to endure a beating from the elements, one of the negatives that marred the night’s action.

GBBC members along with assistance from boxers present, worked overtime to get the ring back in shape for the main contest, but were met with another stumbling block, as the base of one of the huge floodlights burst into flames, sending the venue into darkness.

Technicians from the beverage company worked assiduously hard to restore power, even as some patrons called it a night and made their exit.

Those who remained were described by president of the GBBC Peter Abdool  as ‘hardcore boxing fans’ and they got their money’s worth as De Clou ended Eastman’s reign in the middleweight division.

The judges scored the 12-round fight 117-111, 114-114, 117-111 in favor of De Clou, whose performance though not the best, was enough to conquer a lackadaisical Eastman.

The ‘Battersea Bomber’ slipped in almost every round of the fight, owing to a few damp spots on the canvas, and though he managed to give glimpses of the Eastman of old in rounds five and six, it was a performance that gave a clear indication that he’s at the tail’s end of his career.

The power punches were missing and he repeatedly found himself bracing against the ropes against the taller De Clou, who was guilty of offering Eastman much needed recovery time, when he was on the verge of scoring a knockout victory.

After the bout, De Clou said he’s willing to accommodate a rematch should Eastman want such, but warned his opponent to up his game as he will be working overtime to ensure the title stays in the Mining Town.

In the supporting clash, a 10-rounder, O’Neil brought out her ‘A’ game to topple a determined and aggressive London, who like Eastman, slipped regularly during the bout, but not before she took the fight to her more illustrious opponent from the opening bell.

The tempo changed from round three as O’Neil found her rhythm, dancing around the ring and hitting London at will with some solid combinations to the upper body, twice  unleashing some powerful uppercuts to London’s chin, which brought  the crowd to its feet in the process.

Earlier in the night, Mark Austin earned a split decision against Jermaine King in their welterweight contest, Clive Atwell scored a unanimous decision victory over Orland Rogers and Troy Lewis suffered a split decision loss to Iwan Azore in their rematch.

Simeon ‘Candyman’ Hardy showed Barbados’ Julian Tannis who is truly the knock out artist, when he sent the Barbadian to the canvas three times in the second round, forcing the referee to call it a halt at 1:40 seconds. (Calvin Roberts)