Andrew Murphy W8 Devontae McDonald... On October 3rd, at Legends Casino Hotel in Toppenish Washington, Wenatchee, Washington’s Devontae McDonald (8-7) had his supporters ready to remind Yakima, Washington's Andrew Murphy (14-0) that to them, the first eight rounds in January had never really ended. Murphy’s crowd answered back with roars of their own, and before the opening bell even rang, the rivalry seemed to pick up exactly where it had left off in yet another eight-round-clash. McDonald, who insists he was robbed of a victory by the judges in their first encounter, stood across the ring with a smirk. During the referee’s instructions, Murphy looked back at him and appeared to mouth three words: “Just you wait.”
The opening round between these super middleweights was cautious, with both men waiting to see what the other would do. By the second, McDonald was done waiting. He came out swinging and positioned Murphy against the ropes, refusing to let him go and spending the majority of that round there. For a moment, the question was whether Murphy had been caught there or whether he was content to let McDonald spend his energy trying to keep him pinned? As the rounds passed the answer began to take shape. Murphy grew increasingly confident by keeping his range and looked as though he wanted to use his boxing skill to outpoint Devontae. While McDonald wasn’t landing as often, some of his shots looked as though they carried more weight than Murphy’s. Even after the bell ended each round, the fight seemed to continue in silence. The two men glared at one another each time they returned to their respective corners.
From ringside, the room seemed divided between two very different feelings. There was calm among those watching Murphy settle into the kind of fight Roy Jones Jr. has spent the last six years preparing him for. On the other side was growing desperation and hope, the belief that McDonald still might land that one punch capable of changing the trajectory of the fight. But that punch never came. When the final bell sounded, eight more rounds had been added to a rivalry and closed the chapter. The judges were in unanimous agreement, by scores of 79-73, 78-74 and (77-75) that Murphy had beaten McDonald again, answering “round nine” with eight more of his own.
ADDITIONAL RESULTS
In a four-round junior welterweight explosion, Abel Lucas (1-0) defeated Brandon Watley (1-7-1) by split decision. Making his professional debut, Lucas pressured Watley throughout the four-round bout, giving him little time to counter. Watley took Lucas' barrage of punches well and answered back, but Lucas earned the split decision with scores of 39-37 and 40-36, while Watley took the third card, 39-37.
Next was a featherweight bout between Isaac Russell (2-0) and Micah Mitchell (0-3). Russell won via technical knockout. His speed was on display from the start, as he unleashed rapid combinations with explosive power. Russell drove a shot into Mitchell's body that brought the fight to an end at 2:44 in the second round.
The third fight of the night saw heavyweight Carlos Villanueva (9-3) defeat Theo Doukas (0-2) by unanimous decision in a four-round battle. In a rematch between “The Bull” and “The Grizzly Bear,” the fight looked every bit the part. Doukas came out determined and strong through the opening two rounds, refusing to let up on the gas pedal. The two men spent much of the fight head-to-head on the inside. Villanueva absorbed Doukas’ shots and answered with greater speed and output before using his jab to create distance in the final two rounds and hunting for the liver shot that ended their first meeting. Doukas stayed on his feet through all four rounds, showing improvement after training with Richard Jackson in Lewiston, Idaho, but in the end, Villanueva took the unanimous decision by scores of 39-37 and 40-36 (twice).
The co-feature was a super middleweight four-round bout between Gerald Powell-Wood (3-1-1) and Christian Aguirre (9-15-1). It ended in a a majority draw. Powell-Wood looked to control the range behind his jab, but that plan quickly went out the window as Aguirre worked his way inside and continued to pressure him. What followed was an entertaining back-and-forth brawl, with neither man willing to give much ground. One judge scored it 39-37 for Powell-Wood, while the remaining two saw it 38-38, resulting in a majority draw.
