JUNIOR middleweight Tony Marshall was in the second of three fights of the year when he won a decision over American Rob Bleakley on June 26, 1999. The fight was held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada and was a preliminary bout on a card that featured Paulie Ayala battling Johnny Tapia in the main event.Marshall was born in Guyana, but lived in the USA from an early age. In November 1994 he travelled to Argentina to challenge homeboy Julio Cesar Vasquez for the World Boxing Association junior middleweight title.
Vasquez prevailed via unanimous decision. For his second attempt at a world title Marshall was forced to travel to Spain to challenge Javier Castillejo for the World Boxing Association crown. However, the Guyanese orthodox fighter again lost by unanimous decision.
Marshall is from a small group of Guyanese who, although born in Guyana, never fought a professional bout on home soil. The group includes Cleveland Denny, Egerton Marcus, Adrian Dodson, Steve Frank, Dennis Andries and Vivian Harris.