…Jones/ Corbin clash cancelled
FOLLOWING the cancellation of the much anticipated encounter between reigning light heavyweight champion Kwesi ‘Lightning Struck Assassin’ Jones and Shawn Corbin, Simeon ‘Candyman’ Hardy and Howard ‘Battersea Bomber’ Eastman will meet in the main bout of the 23rd edition of the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC) ProAm Friday Night Fights next week  Friday (June 1) at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.
The two inked their names to contracts yesterday in the boardroom of Abdool and Abdool Insurance Brokers Limited, following which the 41-year-old Eastman, who lost his national middleweight title to Edmond ‘Wonder Boy’ De Clou, said he is excited about the junior middleweight matchup.
“I am excited about this fight and I do hope it will be a dry night, in comparison to my last fight. Other than that, I am comfortable going into this bout, as this is a weight I fought at when I started boxing and I do intend to put on a great show on fight night,” said Eastman whose record reads 46-9 (36 kayos)
Eastman last saw action in October, when he lost a majority decision to De Clou, one of three successive losses, following his victory over Andrew ‘Sixhead’ Lewis, but vows to give Hardy a run for his money, while acknowledging his opponent’s impressive record to date.
“I appreciate the opportunity that is being given to me, to face a young unbeaten fighter, as when you are unbeaten you have a lot of braveness, so I am excited to step into the ring against him.”
He added, “I want the fight to be an exciting one and I hope there is no leak at the Sports Hall. He is a serious opponent as his record tells me that and I am more scared of him than my last opponent, but having said that, I am Howard Eastman and I don’t intend to be anybody’s punching bag.”
The 24-year-old Hardy, who won the World Boxing Council/Caribbean Boxing Federation (WBC/CABOFE) welterweight title, following his sensational knockout victory over Iwan Azore January last, has an impressive record that reads 8-0 with 7 kayos.
Asked if he will be looking to chalk up his ninth knockout victory, Hardy said he is always looking for a knockout, but at the same time, will be looking to get some rounds in, as he is fine-tuning his preparations for the WBC Cup Championships which is set for August.
“First of all, it will be an honour for me to be in the ring with Eastman. I can recall as a teenager after he fought William Joppy, I stood outside of ACME in the rain for over an hour, waiting to get a glimpse of him and later an autograph.
“Now look how things have changed as I am signing a contract to face him in the squared jungle. He is a very experienced fighter who has been there and done that and there is nothing new for him to learn and on June 1, my record will remain unblemished,” said Hardy.
According to Hardy, his pillow list is still there, even though fighters are being ticked off but he is still looking to have a ring date with Lewis and former world champion  Vivian Harris, as he feels there is much to gain from both pugilists.
Meanwhile, Chronicle Sport was reliably informed that Corbin was forced out of the fight with Jones, due to personal contractual arrangements.
According to reports, Corbin is a building contractor in Trinidad and Tobago where he is based and is behind time with a project due to rain, and is finding it difficult to honour his deadline in the Twin Island Republic, which would affect his ring date with Jones, hence the Eastman/Hardy encounter.
Other fights on the card will see Azore taking on Barbados WBC/CABOFE lightweight champion Miguel Antoine, Rudolph Fraser matching gloves with Cassius Matthews in a junior lightweight contest, while Kelsie George will be looking to redeem himself, after his loss to De Clou, when he faces James Walcott.
The night’s action, which is being coordinated in collaboration with the Guyana Amateur Boxing Association and the Ministry of Sport, gets under way at 20:00hrs and will be preceded by four amateur bouts, whose principals will be known at a later date.