The Show Must Go On! Wilkins Stops Dill and Green Edges Evans
By: George H. Hanson Jr., Esq.
Date: May 31, 2025
Venue: Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino and Racetrack – Chester, PA
Promoters: Greg Pritchett & Rashad Brown—Strict Biz Promotions
Ring Announcers: Adam Crist
Referee: Eric Dali
Ring Card Ladies: Maia Murray & Trinity Brown
Timekeeper: Alice “The G.O.A.T” Grady
Coverage: FCLTV.com
Gloves: “Put Up Your Dukes” brand – www.kdukesboxing.com
Photos: Darryl Cobb Jr.
I made my way into the casino at 6:30 PM – thirty minutes before the opening bout to meet Robert Ginyard Jr. (aka Base) who has been training for the past month with me at Marian Anderson Recreation Center, South Philadelphia. Ginyard, a former amateur standout and the son of Rob Base, a member of the famous hip hop duo “Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock” – will be making his professional debut in a few months and was invited by Strict Biz Promotions. Base was on time, arriving a minute after I entered the casino.
At the entrance to the arena/room hosting boxing – lining the tables were bottles of David Hardy’s hot sauce for sale. And they were going like dime bags at a marijuana convention! Despite the teenage boxer being relegated to an exhibition tonight – his fans were making sure that they left with plenty of hot sauce – figuratively and literally! Notwithstanding the truncated card, the fans weren’t dissuaded, and the arena was arguably at seventy-percent capacity. The City of Chester is solipsistic in its belief that Earth revolves around David “Hot Sauce” Hardy!
This was supposed to be the coronation as a headliner for nineteen-year-old featherweight sensation & Chester native – David “Hot Sauce” Hardy (3 wins – 0 losses – 0 draws – 3 kos) who was scheduled to be in the main event of the planned eight-bout card. A supremely gifted and talented fighter, he is a huge draw with his city behind him enjoying the ride to the top which we all are convinced will lead to a world title. Standing 5 ft. 10 inches – Hardy is a featherweight version of legendary World Light-heavyweight Champion – Bob Foster – a tall, sleek boxer with dynamite in both mitts. As fate would have it his opponent Claudio Hernandez, Atlanta Georgia was a no-show at the weigh-ins on Friday – disappearing like Jimmy Hoffa, President of the International Brotherhood of Teamster, on July 30, 1975. It is a rebuttable presumption that Mr. Hernandez will be suspended by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission reminding him that he is a professional boxer and not the reincarnation of the great Harry Houdini.
The cancellation of Hardy’s main event bout was only the tip of the iceberg because five other fights suffered similar fate for various reasons – giving credence to Edsel Murphy’s Law “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” But Strict Biz Promotions was built on hard work, resiliency and intellectual agility. Greg Pritchett and Rashad Brown have been making lemonade out of sour lemons since they arrived on this planet. Equally important, most of the Chester contingent/Hardy’s supporters were not going to be robbed of an opportunity to watch their hometown hero perform under the casino lights. Thus, Hardy would be in a three-round exhibition on the card which comprised two bouts and three exhibitions. The show must go on!
The main event – a scheduled six-rounder – featured Hardy’s stablemate – welterweight Adonis “The Promise” Wilkins (5 wins – 0 losses – 0 draws – 4 kos) Newark, Delaware against southpaw Anthony Dill ( 3 wins – 1 loss – 0 draws – 3 kos) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dill was first out of the dressing rooms and made his way to the ring to the 1970 hit “Ain’t No Sunshine” by Bill Withers. Wilkins and his handlers led by trainer/promoter Greg Pritchett burst into the arena to “Bring Em Out” – the 2004 single by T.I. (Clifford Joseph Harris Jr.) – sweeping the audience into the pageantry – feeling the energy – a harbinger of the explosion that was minutes away.
Referee Dali gave the instructions; the fighters and their handlers retreated to the respective corners and the bell rang for the opening round. Wilkins pressed the action, working behind his jab as Dill retreated cautiously, while moving side to side. It was shaping up to be the traditional “feeling out” round when Wilkins found paydirt – a left hook that connected on his opponent’s chin – immediately anchoring him to the canvas. Somewhat surprised and shaken – the Philadelphian was upright almost instantaneously as referee Dali began the count – wiped his gloves – checked his vitals and the fight resumed with Wilkins pressing the action working behind his jab. With approximately twenty seconds remaining in the round – Wilkins buckled Dill with a vicious left hook to the body that drove him into his corner. Seizing the moment, Wilkins pounced on his opponent like a tiger hunting a wild boar. He landed an array of hard, rapid shots from his arsenal – raining down with bombs from both gloves – forcing referee Dali to jump in and call a halt. Wilkins was declared the winner by technical knockout at 2:56 of the opening round – an extremely impressive performance. The audience cheered raucously, including Wilkins’ grandmother who was seeing him in action for the first time. The show must go on!
In the third bout, a scheduled four-round middleweight match, Tariq “Showtime” Green (5 wins – 4 losses – 2 draws – 3 kos) won a split decision 39-37, 40-36, 37-39 over fellow Philadelphian LaQuan Evans (5 wins – 4 losses – 0 draws – 2 kos). It was a closely contested fight. However, I scored 39-37 for Evans, like the dissenting judge. Both fighters were coming off two consecutive losses and stood eye-to-eye at 6 feet 1 inch. But it was Evans who worked effectively behind his jab in the opening stanza and throughout the fight. He captured the first and second rounds on my scorecard because he controlled the pace and action with his jab.
The third round was close with Evans being warned for placing a shot a little beyond Green’s right kidney. However, there wasn’t much separating the combatants. They fought at close quarters in the fourth and final round with Evans having the edge. However, Green hurt Evans with a hook causing him to hold momentarily and clear his head. He had a speedy recover and finished the round on even terms. The official who scored the fight 40-36 needs a refresher on how to judge a bout or a guide dog. Nevertheless, it was well-matched battle. Hopefully, there will be a rematch – six or eight rounds.
The show opened with a three-round exhibition featuring amateur welterweights Yajaira Vergara Guzman and Olivia Linley – both fighting out of Jack’s Kickboxing Gym, New Castle Delaware – homebase for several of Strict Biz Promotions’ fighters. It was three thrilling two-minute rounds with both boxers demonstrating their pugilistic prowess – unloading with combinations while being defensively responsible. It was safe to assume that they are accustomed to sparring each other. The audience reveled in the gloved combat between two gorgeous ladies displaying their wares. It was a terrific opening to tonight festivities – appreciated by the audience applauding at the end of the final round. The show must go on!
The second bout – another three-round exhibition featuring Philadelphia junior-middleweights Rasheed “Sugar Sheed” Johnson (10 wins – 5 losses – 0 draws – 3 kos) and Naim “The Nightmare” Nelson (15 wins – 7 losses – 0 draws – 1 ko). The thirty-three-year-old Johnson who is coming off a six-round split-decision victory over LaQuan Evans on August 24, 2024, was scheduled to faced Nelson Morales (6 wins – 23 losses -1 draw – 2 kos) the Dominican Republic, fighting out of Scranton, Pennsylvania. Morales suffered from bronchitis seventy-two hours before the fight and had to be sidelined with a doctor’s note. Nelson – two years Johnson’s junior – suffered his seventh loss – a six-round majority decision to Cory Dulaney in his last bout on April 12th. His scheduled opponent William Smith (4 wins – 17 losses – 1 draw – 3 kos) Anchorage, Alaska had thirty days remaining on a 90-day suspension but for some inexplicable reason it wasn’t reflected in the computer system utilized by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission until a few days before the fight. The show must go on!
Therefore, both gentlemen agreed to the exhibition. It was a spirited sparring session with the 6 ft 1 inch Johnson working behind his jab as the 5 ft 8 inches Nelson used excellent head movement to get on the inside. They fought at a high pace for three rounds, entertaining the audience – giving us a glimpse of what could have transpired. It was a great display of the sweet science – a pleasing performance. The show must go on!
In the fifth and final bout – another three-round exhibition – David “Hot Sauce” Hardy squared off against undefeated featherweight David Calabro (5 wins – 0 losses – 0 draws – 3 kos) Aston, Pennsylvania whose opponent came in five pounds over the contracted limit of 130lbs. Calabro tipped the scales at 126lbs – nine pounds less than his opponent. Thus, the fight was scratched because the weight disparity was a pound over the eight-pound limit mandated by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission. The show must go on! Hardy and Calabro donned headgears and sixteen-ounce gloves and gave the fans an exceptional display of the sweet science – boxing and countering – a chess match disguised as nine minutes of fighting. The fans cheered throughout, engrossed in the action in the ring – getting another dose of “Hot Sauce.”
“I want to thank everyone, the pros who took exhibitions, the fans who supported us, Harrah’s Casino and the Mayor of Chester who stayed for the entire show” stated Rashad Brown, Strict Biz Promotions during our post-fight interview. It was another exciting night of boxing despite all that could go wrong going wrong. Kudos to the citizens of Chester, Pennsylvania who came out to support their hot prospect – David “Hot Sauce” Hardy who I believe is three years away from his first world title. Special recognition to Adonis Wilkins who stole the show with his exciting first round knockout in the main event.
Great job by Maia Murray and Trinity Brown, the pulchritudinous ring-card ladies, who were excellent in doing their job – keeping the audience engaged – hurling Strict Biz Promotions’ t-shirts into the crowd throughout the event – much to the delight of the fans. How fortuitous that I was able to snatch one out of the air that was on its way to the audience beyond press-row. Thank you mademoiselles!
Continue to support the sweet science, and remember, always carry your mouthpiece!
ghanson18@icloud.com
