‘The Bogeyman’ scares up a win on debut
In a rare contest marking the professional debuts of two boxers, it was Rashid ‘The Bogeyman’ Stevens, of Team USA, who emerged the winner in the latest bout of the Wray and Nephew Contender Series.
With the iconic stars and stripes of his home country preceeding him into the ring at the Chinese Benevolent Association (CBA) last Wednesday night, Stephens outpointed Jamaican challenger Camion Goldson in a unanimous decision after the bout had gone the full five rounds.
With neither fighter having any foreknowledge of the other, the contest was a cautious one at the outset, and the capacity crowd inside the CBA seemed to have little patience for the boxers taking the measure of each other. Some spectators howled their disapproval, while many others — including six-time Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt — urged them to pick up the pace.
Stevens remained undeterred, however, exemplifying the credo “slow and steady wins the day”. He gradually but unquestionably piled up points on the Jamaican, who was largely confined to keeping his guard up and intermittently searching for an opening, which hardly materialised.
Speaking after his hand had been raised in victory, Stevens, who hails from the Midwestern boxing mecca of Columbus, Ohio, declared that he knew almost from the beginning that the fight would be going his way.
“He’s a good fighter, but he never troubled me at all. And I knew once I kept my focus and hit him consistently, then it was just a matter of time.”
The boyish Stevens was full of praise for the location of his successful pro debut.
“I just have to say, I really love the audience here, the energy and the friendliness and spirit of the Jamaican people. It’s great to come here and fight.”
And Stevens will have another opportunity to experience the Jamaican spirit, as the victory moved him beyond the preliminary stage and into the quarter-finals. Goldson will have to wait a year for another crack at boxing stardom and the Contender purse, which will hand $2 million to the winner, with $500,000, $250,000 and $200,000 going to the runner-up, third and fourth places, respectively.
